Accidental Idol
by Kokoro-no-Kaji
Summary: When Yuri's almost-idol of a brother gets hurt going above and beyond the line of duty, he needs his twin sister to fix everything. And by fix, he means forge. Yuri's nerves and patience are tried repeatedly as she is sucked deeper into the world of idols. Just how long will she be able to keep up this up? And how long will she want to? AU, YB concept-basis.
1. A Daring Debut

**Full Story Summary:** When Yuri's almost-idol of a brother gets hurt going above and beyond the line of duty, he needs his twin sister to fix everything. And by fix, he means forge. Yuri has to take her brother's place in a band she's never met, and successfully trick them, and the watching public, into thinking that she is her brother on stage, at home, and in practice. Things get a little crazy, but a little chaos is good for you, right? Maybe not. Yuri's nerves and patience are tried repeatedly as she is sucked deeper into the world of idols. Just how long will she be able to keep up this charade? And how long will she want to when she starts to fall hard for one of her brother's new band-mates?

**A/N: **The plot basis for this story is the only thing that comes from YB, but it comes directly enough from the kdrama that I still think of it as a fan-fic. I wrote this a few years ago when I was just getting into kpop, and it was my way of starting to dig into the whole korean-idol world.

* * *

Getting off the plane, Kim Yuri stretched her muscles tenderly. Sitting for twelve hours straight, even in first class, was killer. Her limbs were tingling horribly as she stiffly waddled through the airport terminal. By the time she'd gotten her bag, the feeling had mostly dissipated, but sitting in a cab was not by any means an appealing prospect. Instead, Yuri took her suitcase and set off into the beautiful morning cityscape Seoul provided.

Korea was beautiful; she had to admit it after only a few minutes of exploration. Until her brother had insisted she come visit, the appeal of the Asiatic country had never occurred to her. Yuri liked her cozy little home in Maryland. She'd never been one to seek international travels. To get her to fly all the way out to Korea, Jay'd had to arrange her travels, send a plane ticket and backstage concert passes to her doorstep, _and_ pay for nearly all of what her five star luxury hotel room cost. But now that she was here . . . she understood her brother's wanderlust a little better.

Still, it would have been nice if Jay had come home once or twice in the five years since he'd decided to go out and become a pop star. Why Korea, of all places, had struck Jay's fancy in that endeavor Yuri still didn't understand, but the capital city certainly was gorgeous enough to warrant an extended stay. And at least he'd kept in touch; a phone call every day or so, and an email with some pictures and a video at least every week.

Besides, though he'd left his baby sister all alone in the States, he'd actually accomplished what he set out to do. Jay had become an international Idol in a Korean band called QuaszauR. It was the weirdest name Yuri had ever heard of for a band, but the way they did the logo, in such a nearly magical way that the word could be read backwards, forwards, upside-down, _and_ in a mirror . . . she'd settled with the decision that it was pretty cool. And at least it wasn't an acronym; Yuri had seen bands that had acronymic names . . . QuaszauR was just fine the way it was.

Working her way around the city center, Yuri wandered through a pretty park, a cute shopping district, and a delightfully rambling residential area. Then, after buying some lunch and thanking her lucky stars that the Washington DC area had such a high population of Korean immigrants that the native language had been offered for all of her school mandated eight years of linguistic studies, Yuri checked into her hotel.

It was a nice hotel; marble floors and counters, chandeliers, legit bellboys, and complimentary chocolates and bubble-bath. The bubble-bath was a most welcome find for Yuri, whose muscles were still quite stiff. It was a quick five minutes of stowing her stuff, filling her ice-bucket, and setting up her iPod's speaker-set before she slipped into the hot water to while away the afternoon. She refused to give into her drooping eyelids until after she'd had a dinner of cup noodles from the room's microwave and eight pm had rolled around.

Though the adjustment was torturous, it would be better in the long run to get rid of the jet lag as quickly as possible. Once food and other touristy purchases were mixed into the equation, Yuri's small salary from working on various University projects could only afford this hotel for a few days, even when combined with the money Jay had for spending as provided by the JYG talent agency he worked for. She was not about to waste any of her time here with sleeping in.

Yuri allowed herself some leniency, however, setting her alarm for 9:30 am rather than the early morning of four hours before that she was used to from her busy school schedule. The morning saw her refreshed and starving; and after dressing up in the most touristy outfit she had packed herself, complete with knee high socks, over-sized shorts, and a fanny pack, Yuri trotted through the elegant halls to the dining room were a five star breakfast buffet awaited her.

Of course she took pictures of the spread.

She only had three full days in the city, which meant she had to be very thorough in her every endeavor. Today she was a camera-happy uber-tourist. Tonight was her brother's debut concert with QuaszauR; though he'd participated in smaller concerts he'd called fan-meetings, this was his first actual concert. To suit the situation, by tonight the uber-tourist would transform herself into super-chic popstar's-sister material. Tomorrow she hoped to be a normal teenager enjoying a day off with her brother as she toured Seoul like a local. Which left her last day here open for whatever situation arose.

For now, uber-tourist it was.

Within forty feet of leaving the hotel she found a life-size cut-out of Jay inside a smoothie shop. She couldn't resist the temptation. She took a picture of herself using her cell phone, all geeked up for the camera, beside the overly dramatic photo-face of her goof of a brother, and texted it to the boy in question. She got more than a few weird looks from the people in the shop; as expected, it was all part of the experience. To make up for her weirdness, Yuri bought a large strawberry smoothie.

She sipped it as she waited for Jay to reply to her text, talking at the image of him as if the photograph could answer in Jay's place. "You look ridiculous in that get-up, you know. If anyone believes you're ever that serious for more than forty seconds, I'll eat your next CD."

When Jay still hadn't replied by the time she finished her drink, she left the shop and tried calling him. Apparently, his phone wasn't even on. "Thanks a lot, Jay. You spring this concert on me so suddenly I had to let my professors know I wouldn't be able to help out at the psychology convention from my _plane,_ and now you won't pick up your phone! You're such a great big brother."

She supposed being an international idol sensation didn't leave him with much spare time, especially with his first full-scale concert coming up. "Ah well, I'll chew your ears out later for leaving me hanging like this. But first up: The 63 Building!"

Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, someone else was lamenting the status of Jay's cell phone. Well, actually, it was several some ones, and they weren't lamenting so much as outright panicking. They were the members of QuaszauR, the band Jay was supposed to be debuting with in less than six hours. And Jay was nowhere in sight. Kim YoungJae, the band's leader, was quiet and controlled, but anyone with eyes could see through the facade as he paced in circles backstage.

Everyone in the band, every one of the fourteen members, was worried.

By this time, Kim Jaebeom had been training with JYG Entertainment for four and a half years. To have been slotted into a band in that short a time was remarkable, but then again, Jaebeom himself was quite the remarkable singer. He'd been allocated to a band that already had an established fan-base and the reception he was receiving on the net wasn't the best. No one had ever seen him perform his solo, and that was a clincher for QuaszauR fans. Plenty of people could sing and dance and look nice on camera, the sign of a real artist was how well they did in real life. How well they did without having their bandmates there to cover up their mistakes was equally important, and that would be Jay's test tonight.

If Jay didn't show up for this concert, he would have to be cut from the QuaszauR line up in order to keep the fans from outright defaming him before he even got started. It was even possible that he'd have to transfer entertainment companies to prevent facing the ire of jilted fans if he managed to make it in another band. Either way, missing this concert was not an option that left his future shining.

YoungJae continued to pace. They couldn't put off the rehearsal any longer. He gave the order to warm up. His band complied reluctantly. Jaebeom had only been a part of their family for just over six months, but in that time they had all grown attached to him. No one wanted to see him face all of the bad press that would undoubtedly result from his absence.

"But where could he have gone?" Song Jinki spoke up as the group, waiting for the female contingent of their company to join them, took to the stage in the empty arena. It wouldn't remain empty for long, as fans would be flooding through the doors in four hours. The time the missing popstar had to get unmissing was running out fast.

Responding to Jinki's question, one that had been going through everyone's mind since early this morning, Kang Kihun said, "He was supposed to have gotten back from the promotions last night, but maybe something happened."

"No," YoungJae said with certainty. "We planned that too well; we knew about the tight schedule and made allowances. Something else has happened."

"I think I prefer thinking that his train is late," Hwan Donghae responded.

Agreeing completely, Park Chansung added, "That way it's okay that we can't do anything about it. He's still not answering his phone?"

Choi JongHyun nodded. "It's still turned off."

Lee SooHyun's face was grim as she overheard JongHyun's comment. Leading the five girls that were a part of QuaszauR onstage she tried to give a confident declaration, but even to her ears the words sounded flat, "Don't worry, I'm sure every thing's fine."

"Regardless," YoungJae said, "We have to rehearse. We'll plan for Jay being here, and if he for some reason isn't we'll move Donghae's solo to the end, just in case he comes in late; he'll need _Beautiful_ as a lead-in for his solo. That means YeongSaeng's will replace his in the beginning."

Park YeongSaeng nodded. Such a change up wouldn't impact the group dance rehearsal and it would give Jaebeom the highest chance of a successful debut.

SooHyun gave him a supporting smile. "Places then?" she asked, motioning to the rest of the band as YoungJae nodded. "And cue music," she added with a large gesture off stage.

Since the band's entrances were going to be through the special platforms littering the stage the positions they were to begin and end at were crucial. However as the crew was working below to ensure that the platforms would raise and lower properly during the real thing, they simply pretended to sink dramatically through the floor at the end of each of their parts. When they were all onstage together it wasn't a problem, but they had to get a little creative as they practiced strutting alone down the long runway of the stage when the crouching figures of their bandmates littered the path.

They managed however, and in two hours they wrapped up a successful rushed-rehearsal and made their way backstage again to get dressed. Then off to hair and make-up they filed. Fixing up the fifteen, currently fourteen, member band took a long time and was done assembly-line-style to move the process along as quickly as possible. As each member went through they were subject to watching their manager, a man not known for remaining calm in dire situations, gnawing at his fingernails like a chainsaw chewing through tree bark. It was not an image that instilled confidence within the viewers.

The concert was due to start in half an hour by now. The dull roar of the fans could be heard in every corner of the backstage area. And then it was time for final stretching and the short but nerve racking trek to the under-stage area where a sturdy platform was waiting to lift them to meet their fans. Manager Ma was practically in tears because of the tension.

Fifteen minutes to show time.

Last minute primping and tweaking of appearances as the oldest ones helped their dongsaengs.

Ten minutes.

Suddenly a shout was raised from the security staff and a stylishly dressed young person was ushered in. Jaebeom. Several hearts nearly stopped with relief. Then after a second of quiet revelry, the band sunk into heavy focus. This was a performance and they had to give the fans their best.

As they fell into their customary pre-concert Zen mode, Manager Ma's heart was still in high gear. He thanked the security staff and hauled the youngster into the now empty make-up room.

"I'm going to call the police!" Yuri shrieked the moment the door closed behind her and she pulled oxygen into her lungs. All she'd done was leave her seat for a quick trip to the refreshment stand, she'd still had ten minutes and a slush-puppy and nachos seemed called for. But as she'd harmlessly been walking along singing the solo she knew her brother was debuting tonight, these two massive security guards had jumped her; she'd never actually thought an _Asian _could be massive, so much for that American stereotype cliché. They had dragged her who knows where, down at least three separate staircases, and now she was trapped in some low-lit room with a creeper who was probably some mafia boss or something.

He was certainly rubbing his hands together menacingly enough.

Actually, what was making Manager Ma wring his hands together was pure panic.

"Miss Kim?" He asked, "Kim Yuri? You must be her; you really do look just like your brother."

"What?" Yuri wasn't comprehending this at all.

"And you sound just like him too."

Yuri was too busy fishing through the pockets of the cargo pants she'd borrowed from her brother as her cell phone eluded her fingertips to understand anything the man was talking about. A button that automatically dialed 911 would be really useful right now she thought. Then her mind, as it was known to do in stressful situations, wandered to consider if 911 was even the emergency number in Korea.

Manager Ma merely continued rubbing his hands together and babbling aimlessly. Some of what he said formed into proper sentences, even if they didn't make much sense to Yuri. "Jay said you knew all of his songs backwards and forwards, the dances too. He said you're probably better at them than he is. He wasn't exaggerating, right? You know it all, you can do this, right?"

"Do what?"

"Perform of course! Didn't Jay explain things to you?"

Yuri's mind utterly blanked for a third of a second. "Perform?"

This got the already panicking manager into an absolute frenzy. He slipped some sort of wire around Yuri's neck and slid what looked like an old walkie-talkie into one of her pockets. As he struggled to quickly explain, he nervously rearranged the short, spiky locks of hair she'd styled into an edgy swirl around her face, "Jaebeom's been injured. He can't perform tonight. I'll explain it all later, but right now you have to go!"

"Go where?"

Manager Ma hauled on Yuri's arm, dragging her around for the umpteenth time that night. She was pushed into a crowd of dramatically posed people. She recognized them vaguely from the pictures Jay had emailed her over the past few months.

And then the floor began to move.

Yuri nearly collapsed as the vibrations rocked through her knees and realization jolted through her brain. In less than five seconds of heart pounding terror, Yuri was onstage.

The roaring crowd, the blinding lights, and the deep pounding of a beat rocking through her made the entire thing feel very dream-like. No, it was more like she was underwater, watching the action of people on the surface from within her own little world.

Around her, QuaszauR was feeding off the energy of the screaming crowd. The beat in the background wasn't particularly fast, but the excitement behind it increased the frenzy of the event of the band's arrival.

"Yo! Are you ready for this?" YoungJae shouted as the solitary beat began to blur with an overlay of melody.

"Come on, Lemme hear ya scream!" SooHyun added, waving her arms to encourage the fans. As if they needed any more provocation.

Arms were flung around Yuri's waist. On one side she could discern the face of Song Jinki, framed by gelled tendrils of bleach-blonde hair. On her other side was Heo KyuJeon, his hair made almost orange by the bleach that made his bandmate blonde and with portions teased out dramatically so as to look fuzzy and soften his angular features. They were bouncing along to the beat, filled with energy. On the other hand Yuri was amazed that she was still standing, so overwhelmed was she by the mass of people screaming at her, watching her every move as highlighted by the precise beams of the glaring spotlights.

It wasn't hard for the rest of QuaszauR to spot that the person they had taken for Jaebeom was panicking. They however couldn't tell a thing about Yuri's true identity, under the lights it was remarkable that they could recognize each other at all.

In addition to the supportive arms of Jinki and KyuJeon, Yuri received pats on the back and reassuring smiles from Park YeongSaeng, Kang Kihun, and Choi JongHyun. And then the real worrisome part began. The group split off in a well choreographed routine that left Yuri standing alone and obviously lost in the center of the stage.

The only good news was that she recognized this song. It was the first one Jay had shown her when he had first joined up with this band. Trying to remember to breathe, Yuri melded into the dance. Her moves were stiff and awkward with panic, but at least she wasn't just standing there anymore. Actually joining in to sing along was out of the question, she could hardly focus enough to keep enough air moving through her to stave off a fainting spell.

When the song ended, Yuri hoped that she could somehow find a way to escape, that they would go back down through that platform thing and she could get out and hide under the stage. She had no such luck as the band moved towards the back of the stage during the song's ending notes. With thirteen people gathered in a vaguely straight line at the end of the stage furthest from the bulk of the crowd, YoungJae and SooHyun stepped forward to make the customary thank you for coming, we hope you enjoy the concert speech. As they spoke the rest of the band covered their mics and tried to calm Yuri down.

They gave her little reassurances that did absolutely nothing to settle the hornet's nest writhing within her stomach. She felt like she was going to throw up.

And then the young man she recognized as one of her brother's most admired hyungs came up to her. "What did you do to your hair?" Hwan Donghae said nonchalantly, with a hand over his mic. "You look like a wet dog."

Something about the way he said it, or the way he was so at ease with the situation, or maybe just that he wore this smile that was sweet and silly at the same time, made Yuri go still. Her breathing almost returned to an acceptably regular level and a bit of the dizziness abated. Donghae ruffled her hair, flicking bits of it to and fro as he tried to salvage the style.

When he decided that nothing could be done, he pulled off his hat and set it down on her head at an angle. He stood back to admire his work for a moment, but then he turned back to the stage with a confident spin as YoungJae announced the premiere of his solo. The leader gave Donghae a pat on the shoulder as he headed back to join the group, and Donghae blew SooHyun a kiss as she followed along.

And then he posed with one hand outstretched and the other at his hip as he bowed his head. When the tinkling sound of a piano filtered through the speakers, Donghae didn't move. The mass of fans however recognized the sound and they erupted in a new bout of screaming that surpassed any volume of sound Yuri had ever before heard.

The celebration was for very good reason, Yuri soon discovered as a quick beat began to thunder under the piano's elegant melody. Donghae launched into a flurry of movement, an arrangement of precise movements that displayed perfect body control. If that wasn't enough to sustain the fans' frenzy, his voice was easily the best instrument Yuri had ever heard. " 'Cause you, you are my beautiful, my beautiful, oh~oh~ yeah . . . saranghanda miinah . . . "

Yuri knew this song, Jay had sung it for her. The combination of English and Korean, while not a new technique in songwriting, had become a perfected art in this song. It had been Yuri's favorite of the songs Jay had shown her, well favorite after her bias tied her heart to her brother's solo song. Jay however, hadn't been able to capture even half of the grandeur Donghae imparted on the melody.

It was sappy and cliché, but the only word Yuri could think of to explain how Donghae's voice moved effortlessly through the notes was _magical_. He sang through the lyrics, which though arranged in a particularly sweet manner were nothing revolutionary, impressing a deeper meaning into them. And something about his constant movement and the silly grin he wore made it feel like he really meant what he was saying. But the most magical thing about Donghae's performance was how he managed to make it seem like he was speaking directly to her; which clearly he wasn't, but regardless the thought that he could be made Yuri's heart race in a way much more pleasant than it had been only moments ago.

For his part, Donghae was simply enjoying the spotlight. He was a performer through and through and there was nothing he liked better than to give his fans a show they would scream about, even as they looked back on it weeks later. It was due to that reason that Donghae found his stunt with giving Jay his hat surprising. Normally, at the end of whatever solo piece he performed he flipped the ornament off and spun it around in a series of tricks that the audience never failed to appreciate. Now that Jaebeom had his hat however, he finished off with only a bow; the crowd didn't seem to mind very much.

As the music's end, Donghae straightened and began a speech. "Hey everyone; all you fans out there! Thank you for supporting us, you've taken us from JYG trainees to becoming the world's largest and most successful super-group! As you know, we have fourteen members and the voices of both ladies and gents contributing to our sound. And as you've been hearing for the past few weeks, we have one more member to introduce you to. Please show Kim Jaebeom as much support and kindness as you have the rest of us."

Donghae's formality ended there. "And don't be too harsh on him. Remember it's his first time singing in front of so many pretty girls."

With a wink he spun around to walk with an unhurried pace back to the group gathered at the far end of the stage. They were staying there purely for Jaebeom's benefit, it was a scary thing to stand alone in front of such a crowd, and Jay could use all of the moral support he could get.

Yuri didn't understand what was happening as Jinki and KyuJeon let go of her and someone, probably Park Chansung judging from his height, pushed her forward. Whoever had propelled her forward had pushed hard enough to send her stumbling out to meet Donghae as he strolled along the stage. He grabbed Yuri by the shoulders, made her stand up straight, and adjusted the angle of his hat on Jay's head. Something about the new singer made Donghae wants to take pains to show the fans that he was supported by established members, though he hadn't been particularly close to Jay during the past few months of his training.

He snapped a few times in front of Yuri's face, jolting her out of the daze created by his singing and by the sudden movement she'd taken onto center stage. "Yah!" bending down a bit to make his eyes level with hers, he threatened, "If you screw this up you're gonna be honorary maknae for a month. Jaebi could use the break." He grinned at her as the fans laughed behind him, and then in another moment he was gone, strolling the rest of the way down the stage with his thumbs hooked on his pockets.

And then the music started.

Jay's solo was an energetic and dramatic song. It fed perfectly off the mellow tone of Donghae's song. Whereas Donghae's was a whimsical tale of this-is-why-I-love-you, Jay's solo played out the details of his courtship, the sweetly extreme lengths he went to in order to gain the girl's favor. Pairing the songs for the concert like this not only went well in terms of musical aesthetics, but also for giving Jay the credit of having the universally loved Donghae as his opening act of sorts.

It would have been perfect, if indeed it had been Jay on the stage.

As it was, Yuri stared mutely and wide-eyed at the rolling mass of people in front of her, hidden just enough by the blinding lights to make them seem in even larger numbers than they really were. They were waiting with bated breath, which actually creeped Yuri out more than the screaming. She wasn't a popstar! She was a shower-singer! The only singing lessons she'd ever taken were in the fourth grade school chorus or when Jay had wanted a practice buddy.

She couldn't just stand there though!

Without another option presenting itself before her, Yuri squeaked out the first lines of Jay's song as the cue came up. During the short pause between the opening and the first verse Yuri took a deep breath. She was onstage now, and there was nothing she could do about it, save stop the show. That however would not give her brother a good reputation in the music world, even if the misunderstanding was cleared up eventually. The best thing she could do was to calm down and sing.

She thought about the calm excitement she'd felt during Donghae's solo, and remembered his words of encouragement and that goofy grin, she filled her lungs with enough air to adequately fuel her voice for the next series of lines. "Hey girl, come on, Listen up! Nae miinah, nae miinah, naege matchwo boringol non jal aljani ah~ . . ."

As she sang, Yuri gained a bit of confidence in herself. She wasn't any kind of professional, but at least she could be certain she wasn't completely screwing this up. Well, sorta. There was a dance that went with this song; she remembered right before the chorus . . . Jay had taught it to her through his webcam, along with the other dances he'd been learning with QuaszauR. It was a part of the show that she'd been utterly neglecting, which could not be good for her not-screwing-up quota.

To fix this, Yuri waited for the chorus to break out and right on her internally assigned cue she jumped into action. It was significantly harder to sing as she worked to remember the dance's choreography, both because of her split concentration and the sudden demand for her lungs to take in even _more_ air. She tossed out a few of the most demanding moves, like the series of back-flips towards the end, that she could do only on good days even when she wasn't singing, so that at least the show sounded nice. And seriously, how many acrobatic maneuvers did one song call for?

It wasn't until the song had ended and the entire group of singers behind her had suddenly popped up around her that Yuri realized sometime during her performance, the audience had broken back into raucous cheering. She received at least a dozen quiet, 'good work,' comments and so many pats on the back it began to hurt as she was shuffled within the coalescing group to the center platform they had all risen up on what felt like hours ago.

Up on stage as the rest sunk below, Choi JiEun asked, "So what do you guys think of our newest member? Pretty cool?"

Yuri couldn't see how they reacted, but she did hear a rise in the volume of screaming. Hopefully, that was good news . . .

Waiting for the band below stage, Manager Ma was in tears. Yuri had only seen the man twice in her life and both times he'd had watery eyes. Judging by the nonchalant reaction of the band at this display of relief, she assumed he was simply a very emotional person.

"How did it go?" he asked, taking Yuri's arm and towing her back into the empty make-up room they'd held their first conversation in. "Jay was right that you could sing, and you sounded _just_ like him, sorta, but how did the fans take it?"

"Well . . . I think," Yuri said, her head buzzing with the sudden release of stress that had flooded out of her system when she'd sunk out of sight of the audience.

She took another second to recover, but then she demanded, "Where's Jay?"

"Japan."

"WHAT?"

With a hurried glace around them, Manager Ma shushed Yuri quickly and whispered in a heavy torrent of pleading words, "He was there for a promotional, and I asked him to do an extra show, as a favor to me because I'm getting married and needed some extra money and he fell and hurt his leg a few days ago. There was no way he could perform tonight and since it was during a non-scheduled activity I was going to be fired if I tried to stop the concert, but Jay wouldn't let me tell the President, he said you could do the show for him . . . "

Yuri sighed heavily. Jay was dead meat walking . . . oh when she got her hands on him . . .

That's when it hit her. "My brother thinks I look like a guy?"

"It's not that, it's just your faces look so much the same that the camera images won't tip anyone off, and since the band was so desperate to find Jay that just about anyone could have passed for him . . . It was the best thing we could think of . . ." Manager Ma trailed off lamely.

Yuri was so furious for a minute that she felt her face turn purple. That Jay had planned to use her as a stand in was one thing, but that he hadn't told her about it first was another. And even though she did have short hair at the moment, and was wearing the dark cargo pants and leather jacket Jay had sent her so she could 'fit in' at the concert, she did NOT look anything like a guy! Heck, she didn't even think her face remotely resembled Jay's, but that was a different issue.

Also to be considered separately was Jay's current state.

To the great relief of Manager Ma, who had been watching her fury boil over inside her, Yuri softened dramatically and asked, "How hurt is Jay?"

"We're not really sure right now. His leg was causing him a lot of pain, and he stayed in Japan for tests, but this morning when I talked to him he seemed much better."

"His phone was off this morning," Yuri commented, perplexed.

Manager Ma nodded. "He didn't want any of his bandmates to be able to use the GPS to find him, or something crazy like that. He's staying in a hospital in Harajuku, Tokyo. I can give you the number to his room."

"Please do," Yuri said stiffly, thinking about what she was going to say to him.

"But first, you must get back onstage. _Love Story_ is up in a moment or two, and Jay has a solo verse in that song," Manager Ma stated.

Yuri paled. "I have to go back up there?"

"Of course, you have to finish the concert!"

"Jay!" Yuri yelled to the wind, back to being furious.

Manager Ma began to wonder if the charade would hold for the rest of the show. Yuri had a much more volatile temper than her brother, and even people who were looking to see Jay might notice that he'd suddenly become bipolar.

"_Love Story_ is the one where um . . . Lee SeungMi had that really high note in the bridge right? La-da-da-da-daaa-La-da-da-da-dum, for the opening to the chorus?"

"That's the one, you know it right? Jay said you knew all of them, and the dances."

"It doesn't have any back flips in it, right? I know them but there are just some things I can't do," Yuri explained. She had better get a baby-sister-of-the-year award for doing this, she wasn't one to take kindly to the spotlight, unlike Jay.

"You'll be fine," Manager Ma said, adding, "After _Love Story_, Jay doesn't have another song for twenty minutes, some of the solos are going, so I'll give you Jay's number when you get back down here."

"Promise?"

"Yes, now go!"

Manager Ma pushed her out the door and once again Yuri was swept up by the tide of the band. Only half of the band sang for _Love Story_, four of the girls and four of the boys, when Jay had been added in. As the platform rose, Yuri's mind blanked as to what she was expected to do. Seeing the huge crowd and hearing the endless roar brought all of her fear up all again.

Donghae appeared beside her, an arm slung loosely about her shoulder. "You're not quite cool enough for my hat," he said, flipping it off of Yuri's head and neatly onto his own. "You can have YeongSaeng's," he added, stealing the hat off of his friend and plopping it down with a uniquely Donghae flair.

As the fans laughed, YoungJae grumbled with a hand over his mic, "This is a concert Donghae, not a game of musical hats."

Once the music had started, and Donghae had given her a wink in response to the leader's discontent, all of Yuri's fear of having forgotten the song vanished. Though enjoyable was a word ill-applied to the situation, at least Yuri wasn't as terrified as she'd been during Jay's solo. And she was pleasantly surprised at her upper-body strength as she managed to catch, and not drop, Ahn MinJi when the choreography demanded the action. The honorary maknae was as light as her reputation led fans to believe, but Yuri was even less arm-strong than stage-brave.

The song finished without major mishap, Yuri even managed to belt out Jay's solo in a reasonably well performed way. And though her ears were ringing and her arms felt like lead weights, Yuri found herself moderately pleased as she walked off the platform to meet Manager Ma with her brother's contact information.

As she trotted off, QuaszauR's members, save for Kang Kihun and Lee SeungMi who were onstage performing their duet, mused at his oddness.

Jinki was most vocal, bored as he was without his fellow goof to amuse him while he wasn't needed. "Why does he keep running off like that? What could he possibly be doing?"

Park Chansung added, "He's being really weird. How many of you noticed how many steps he's missed tonight?"

"Oh, shove it," Donghae said scoffed, lounging on a collection of unused amps. "He's just nervous. He nearly forgot the words to his own song earlier!"

YeongSaeng was instantly suspicious. "Do you know something we don't?"

KyuJeon caught what his hyung meant instantly. "You have been really nice to him tonight, you must admit that."

This piqued Jinki's interest, as he ran through the concert in his mind, he too saw the strange attachment. "You _have_ been exceptionally friendly."

"It's not that unusual," JongHyun commented. "Donghae's a sucker for the shy ones, remember how he was with little SeungMi when she was first attached to QuaszauR?"

"And MinJi, and Jaebi, and even Dara, Jinki, and JiEun," YoungJae added.

Choi Jaejin, the group's true maknae who was subject to being called Jaebi by bandmates and fans alike, protested to this announcement, "Donghae-hyungnim never let _me_ wear his hat."

"I didn't know Donghae-ah ever let _anyone_ wear one of his hats," Lee SooHyun chided at the young man in question. "He's so protective of those things."

Donghae gave no indication of having heard. He'd pulled his hat down over his face after telling the band to drop the subject of Jay's strangeness and was proceeding to take, or at least was pretending to take, a catnap.

The subject turned from Donghae's strangeness back to Jaebeom's. More considerings on where he'd been loitering before the concert came up, and more on his strange behavior on stage and below, were voiced. No one could make any sense of it. As Kihun and SeungMi came below, and Dara, who hadn't joined in the conversation because she'd been preparing for her solo, went up, it was decided that someone ought to go interrogate the wandering popstar.

The band momentarily mourned the loss of Dara from their ranks, she was one of the boldest among them _and _she was close enough to Jay to make her concern for his behavior more than the nosey curiosity of his other bandmates. Their next choice was Jinki, but he was already sobering up for his solo, which immediately followed Dara's. Their next option was MinJi, who was about as cunning as a wet kitten, but could act the part better than SeungMi, who would easily have lost a fight against the poor besodden feline. All of the other options would have resulted in Jay clamming up real quick, knowing that it wasn't simple concern that motivated their actions.

Besides, MinJi's next song wasn't for half an hour, more than enough time to use the last ten minutes of Jay's break to absorb information with time to spare so that she could relay what she learned to the rest of the band.

When MinJi arrived, walking as slow as she was to buy time to figure out what she would say to Jay to get him to talk, she discovered that she hadn't needed to bother. Jay was involved in a shouting match that could be heard easily from ten paces outside the door. It must have been on a cell phone or something because she could only hear half of the conversation.

"If you ever get out of the hospital I'm going to break every bone in your body," Jay was yelling. "No, this is not being violent. I'm very calm. You! You should be worried. Look at what you've done here! I'm missing an amazing summer project for this you know. And my friends, they must think I've fallen off the planet! You can't just drag someone around, _invite _them places, and then not even be in the same _country_! Yes, I did think it was a bit weird, but I missed you. I thought we could hang out, have dinner or something. I still have the concert tickets, the passes are good for backstage at the next few too, aren't they? I've been waiting to see you, so you'd better show up, got it? This isn't funny! Fine, just get better and get back here; I hate thinking that you're cooped up in some Japanese hospital. Are the rooms like their hotels? So you do have some space, that's good. Oh, yeah, your favorite song is coming up, so I gotta go. Of course, I'm at the concert, where did you think I'd be? Hmmm, Thanks. I love you, too. Bye."

The eavesdropping SeungMi heard the beep of a cell phone disconnecting and jumped to think of an explanation for her presence outside the door as she heard Jay's heavy footsteps approaching.

"Jay-oppa!" MinJi called as innocently as possible just before the door swung open. She pretended to look surprised that he answered so quickly. He was certainly extremely surprised to see her there. For a moment, MinJi thought her ruse would fail, but as she continued, Jay appeared to relax and accept her explanation. "You need to get ready to go onstage."

"Yeah, I was just heading that way, thanks."

"No problem," MinJi said cutely, watching her bandmate go. She was waiting nervously for him to turn around and question her, Jay was usually very suspicious of everything, but he never paused in his stroll towards the rest of the group.

MinJi followed a cautious distance behind. She marveled at how small he seemed as compared to Chansung and JongHyun. Donghae looked nearly a head taller than him and even YeongSaeng was a hand-span higher. It must be a weird illusion cause by the hat, MinJi decided. It was the only explanation, because Jaebeom had definitely been the same height as Donghae during their last practice session. Hadn't he?

As the five ascended to perform their song, MinJi was assaulted with questions. Dara, who'd been unable to participate in the earlier musings, was especially interested. MinJi relayed every detail she could remember of the conversation. She couldn't make heads or tails of it, but SooHyun was nodding like all the puzzle pieces were falling into place. Most of the others were in the same straights as MinJi and after a bit of bowing down to the great wisdom of the female half of their dual leadership, they got SooHyun to explain herself.

"He has a girlfriend," she said simply. "It's obvious. That's why security found him just waiting around outside, he was waiting for her. And no wonder he's a bit off tonight, he must be worried sick about her, laid up in the hospital! Poor Guy."

Jealous, Jinki grumbled, "When on earth did that guy find time to get a girlfriend?"

JiEun shrugged. "I dunno, but SooHyun's right, that does make sense."

The rest of the break was spent in quiet contemplation. Whispers were spread between the members that had been onstage with Jay when SeungMi's information had been divulged as soon as they came down from the stage, well after Jay had gotten out of earshot that is. Nods of understanding made the rounds, but a few people, particularly Dara, were unconvinced.

Yuri was far too tired by this point to notice the way the band was talking about her, many members staring openly. And there was still another hour left in the concert, the latter half of which she was expected to spend the entire duration onstage, actively singing and dancing to the songs the entire group of fifteen were involved with. She was a zombie already, and that state of mind only got worse as the night wore on.

One benefit of this seeping tiredness, Yuri noted in an amused and very detached way, was that because she was so exhausted, she didn't have the energy to spare being nervous. The crowd screaming her name, along with those of the other members, didn't bother her at all anymore.

When at last the concert ended, Yuri blindly followed the band as they piled into waiting vans and were carted to the dormitory they called home. It wasn't a mansion of any sort, but in comparison to many of the dormitories allotted to other idols it was massive and very high end. Yuri noticed all of this, but she didn't process any of the information. She somehow managed to stumble over to a couch and crash down into relative comfort before blacking out completely.

The rest of the members briefly contemplated moving Jay to his bed, but decided against it on account of their own exhaustion.

It wasn't for several long hours that Yuri surfaced into awareness again. Her neck ached from being pinched at a weird angle against the arm of the couch, her every muscle throbbed with over-use, and worst of all she smelled to high heaven of sweat. She _needed_ a nice, hot shower.

It took a few minutes of quiet exploring for Yuri to locate the bathroom she thought best to use. Of the three within the massive dormitory, this one was the furthest away from the bedrooms, on the far side of the kitchen from them. And the bedrooms themselves were helpfully labeled with their owner's names. Better yet, as Jay had previously mentioned to Yuri, each member had a room, small as it was, to him or herself. It meant that Yuri could fish though Jay's clothes for some pajamas without having to worry about waking anyone.

Even with the odds on her side, she wasn't quite successful in ensuring that she didn't wake _anyone_. Donghae, whose room was closest to the kitchen partitioning the bathroom from the sleeping area, heard the shower start up. Since he was awake and thirsty anyway he slipped out of bed and made his way into the kitchen, dimly lit by a series of nightlights put in place to facilitate just such night-time outings.

He wasn't alone in his midnight craving for tea. Dara was already there, cradling a steaming mug close to her as it steeped. "Why are you up?" Donghae asked quietly. Dara was one of the heaviest sleepers in the group; she probably hadn't been woken by the shower.

"No reason, you?"

"Mr. squeaky clean couch potato there woke me up," Donghae replied ignoring her obvious perturbance for the moment as he poured himself some of the water Dara had heated up already.

Leaning back against the counter so that he was directly across the small room from Dara, Donghae waited. He knew what was bothering her, and that if he tired to bring it up in any way she would deny everything. He blew gently on his tea to help hasten its cooling process.

"It's just weird," Dara said eventually. "That Jay has a girlfriend."

"You're telling me! That guy is really some piece of work."

"I never thought he'd want one, you know?"

"I suppose it's natural that he would, but . . .

"But . . . ?" Dara prodded as Donghae paused to test the temperature of his tea.

Donghae drew out the tension just a bit longer, trying to make Dara squirm. "I just don't think that's what's going on. Jay's acting odd, but only tonight. I mean, don't you think we would have noticed something was up if he'd gotten a girlfriend? Jinki was right, when do any of us actually have time to date? Unless it's another JYG artist, we really don't actually _meet_ anyone, you know? If Jay was seeing someone, we'd be able to figure it out."

After a quiet moment Dara asked, "But then who's in the hospital that he's so worried about?"

"I dunno," Donghae replied with a shrug. "But I'm _sure_ it's not his girlfriend."

Dara sipped her tea. Her tolerance for heat was about the same as Donghae's, so he cautiously followed suit. Neither of them spoke until nearly half of their tea had been drained. Adjusting her grip on her mug, Dara said, "You're probably right."

"I usually am," Donghae said, satisfied. "See you in the morning, then," he told her, raising his mug in her direction before heading down the hall to his room. He leaned on his wall, just inside with the door slightly ajar, for another five minutes until Dara padded quietly to her room.

He was about to get back in bed when Jay came tiptoeing by from his late night shower. There was definitely something very strange about him tonight, Donghae thought. After a show, Jay was usually the bounciest of the lot, riding the high of the crowd and converting it directly into energy. But tonight, he was more exhausted than Donghae had ever seen him. Sure, this concert had been bigger and a lot longer than any of the others Jay had participated in, but that should have made him all the more hyper.

It was all very strange Donghae mused as he finished his tea and slipped into bed. Between the tea and his satisfaction at helping Dara get some rest, Donghae was able to fall asleep quickly and get up at his bright and early usual.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this part! The rest is already written and will be going up in sections over the next week or so!


	2. Suspicions, Truce, and Getting to Work

**A/N:** Here's a little cheat-sheet reminder for you about all the Idols attached to QuaszaR, they're arranged in the order in which they joined the group! (the sub groups bit will be explained further, later on.)

**QuaszauR Line-up **

**Kim YoungJae** - Leader

Sub Group - Mellow (leader)

**Choi JongHyun** - Lead Dancer

Sub Group - Action (leader)

**Park Chansung** - Dancer/vocals

Sub Group - Action (lead vocals)

**Song JinKi** - vocals

Sub Group - Mellow (lead vocals)

**Lee SooHyun** - Secondary Leader

Sub Group - Sweet (leader)

**Choi JiEun** - Dancer/vocals

Sub Group - Sweet (lead dancer)

**Hwan DongHae** - Vocals/composer/dancer

Sub Group - Action

**Park YeongSaeng** - high vocals

Sub Group - Action

**Lee SeungMi** - high vocals

Sub Group - Sweet

**Jung Dara** - rapper/dancer

Sub Group - Sweet

**Kang Kihun **- High vocal

Sub Group - Mellow

**Heo KyuJeon** - dancer

Sub Group - Mellow

**Ahn MinJi **- Dancer (maknae mock 2)

Sub Group - Sweet

**Cho JaeJin (Jaebi)** - Dancer/vocals (true maknae)

Sub Group - Mellow

**Kim JaeBeom (Jay)** - Dance/vocals (newest member/Yuri's brother)

Sub Group - Action

**Kim Yuri** - Replaces brother

* * *

Yuri found herself with a massive headache when she roused at nearly ten that morning. She could hear that a few of the others were already up. Jay had a bottle Tylenol on his bedside table, so Yuri was able to knock out at least one of her problems in relative ease. Solving the other was a bit trickier.

As she waited for her headache to ease, Yuri fished through her brother's _three _closets. "Jeez, Jay, how many clothes do you have?"

The mass of clothes, as ridiculous as it was, provided Yuri with her best shot of getting out of the house unnoticed. Before she got dressed though, she called Manager Ma. He'd given her his cell phone number at the same time he'd handed over the one for Jay's hospital room. Now, she demanded a ride back to her hotel and didn't give him time to complain about the early hour. Though he may have been a late sleeper, Yuri felt like she'd already whiled away most of the day, and she had very few of them left in Korea.

Then, slipping into three large T-shirts, a leather jacket, baggy jeans that needed to be held up with suspenders, and a hat, Yuri cautiously slipped out of her brother's room. She kept her hat pulled low over her head as she shiftily skirted though the dormitory as fast she possibly could. Jinki called out to her just before she reached the door, but she ignored him and fled to the relative safety of the stairwell.

Jinki pouted, grumbling at the door as Yuri slammed it shut. Everyone in the common area took it as just another part of Jay being weird because of his sick girlfriend. Well, everyone save for Dara, Jaebi, YeongSaeng, and KyuJeon; three of whom Dara had spent the morning using Donghae's logic to convince. They were eager to get to the bottom of things, but they could be patient. If Jay wanted to skip breakfast, that was on his shoulders; there would be plenty of time to figure things out later.

Downstairs, Yuri waited outside in a neat little park like alcove for Manager Ma. It was a nice day, warm and sunny, with a slight breeze to keep things cool. Yuri wanted nothing more than to get back to her hotel, change out of the sweltering layers of fabric she was currently trapped in, and get out to explore the city where she had left off yesterday. Manager Ma drove up in a very boxy little car that looked much more like an old toaster than a motor vehicle. It fit his odd little personality well and contrasted neatly with his rather pudgy shape.

He was in a bright yellow T-shirt and a pair of studded red jeans that clashed utterly, and his hair was sticking out that the strangest angles as he approached Yuri. She had to laugh, to him rolling out of bed before noon was like a 2am wake-up call to any normal person. How he had managed to get here without crashing his little toaster was a mystery.

"Give me the keys; I'll drive us to the hotel."

"Yuri-ssi," the manager said slowly, half with sleep daze and half with trepidation.

Yuri held out her hand for the keys, a bright smile on her face. "Yeah? I won't hurt your car if that's the problem."

"It's not that." Manager Ma hesitated for another few seconds, fiddling with the hem of his hideous yellow shirt, before he said, "You can't go back yet, Yuri-ssi."

"What do you mean I can't go back?"

Yuri's hand, still outstretched for the keys, began to sink back to her side as a heavy feeling sank through her stomach. "Jay's hurt and in Japan, you have to be here in his place."

"I already did Jay's part in the concert, that's it right?"

"Unfortunately not."

Yuri sighed. She should have known things couldn't be resolved so easily, despite her brother's promises from last night. "But they're gonna find out I'm not Jay if I stay here any longer! Can't you just say he has family stuff to do today?"

"It's not that simple. QuaszauR is hosting a radio program in an hour, and Jay has to be there, it was scheduled months ago," Manager Ma explained.

"Tell them his father just had a heart attack and he needs to see him in the hospital," Yuri pressed, though her words were filled more with pleading than command.

Manager Ma sighed, and placed a comforting hand on Yuri's shoulder. "This industry doesn't work that way. Jay could still be dropped from the QuaszauR line on a moment's notice; there are plenty of JYG trainees willing to take his place."

"But that's not fair," Yuri wailed, wondering if she would get to spend any of her vacation actually on vacation.

"JYG treat's it's artists very well, we keep them healthy, living in nice places, eating good food, and we make sure they get an average of around six hours of sleep a night. Nothing on anyone's schedule stars before eight, except for very special cases. But we can't afford to let them have any additional free time, especially in a huge band like QuaszauR that has to fight hard for every new fan."

"Do I have to actually say anything on this radio show?"

"Probably not. You may be asked to sing a bit, but you can get away with saying that your throat's sore because it's not used to the strain of full concerts yet."

Yuri really, really, _really_ didn't want to do this, but Jay had worked so hard to get to where he was. This business was his dream, he'd been working towards this goal since his was four years old and he had gotten a plastic microphone with his Happy Meal. And the reason it was all in jeopardy was because he was a kind heart and had helped out a friend in need. Yuri couldn't say no to protecting her big brother's hard work . . . but she certainly could gripe about it.

"If Jay comes back from that hospital alive, I'm gonna wring his little neck," Yuri commented.

"Don't worry; he should be back in a few days."

"Don't you, "don't worry" me," Yuri snapped. "This is disproportionately _your_ fault too, you know. My brother's an idiot, but you're even worse. This girl you're marrying better be worth a _LOT._"

Manager Ma winced at Yuri's accusations, but when his girlfriend was mentioned he softened in an instant. "Yuna's worth the world," he said dreamily, all moony-eyes and sap.

It was creepy to watch. Shaking her head, Yuri turned away from him. She pinched the bridge of her nose right between her eyes, feeling the return of her headache threatening at the edges of her stressed mind. How was she going to pay for an extended stay? Her suitcase was still in her hotel room, so it wasn't like she could just let the reservation run out. And when would she get the time to change her travel arrangements? There was no way she could afford to simply buy a new plane ticket, she'd need to get a reimbursement for her canceled flight . . . it was a logistical nightmare . . .

"Some one's up early."

Yuri looked up to see Hwan Donghae of all people strolling casually towards her. He was wearing a hoodie, ski cap, and dark California shades, but it could be no one but him. Yuri was surprised to see that a mob of fangirls hadn't found him; real-life super-stardom couldn't leave a guy as anonymous as it did in dramas. And Donghae was so handsome; he ought to have been recognizable regardless of his 'disguise'.

"Hello? I guess you aren't as awake as you look," Donghae commented as Jay sort of stared off into space before him. "Want some iced coffee? I've got mocha or two, a few lattes, a couple Americans, and then your plain old Brazilian roast."

For the first time, Yuri focused on what Donghae was carrying. The Starbucks logo was the most comforting thing she had seen in a long time. It was just so completely normal, like she was back in DC, that it made everything going on seem much easier to bear.

"Mocha, please," Yuri said, gratefully.

As Donghae handed the icy drink over, she had a moment of panic. The popstar was giving her the strangest look. But Jay liked coffee, right? He was the one who had first turned her on to the wonders of espresso and chocolate.

Jay may have liked coffee, mochas in particular, but Donghae couldn't recollect having ever heard the young American say _please_ before, at least not in such earnestness. And Yuri's next comment threw Donghae off even more. "Can I help you carry some of those?"

"Sure, here." He handed her one stack of coffees, keeping half for himself. Each was rather hefty, a caffeine run for a band of fifteen wasn't exactly a light load after all, but it wasn't too hard to carry up the stairs. Manager Ma had been left in his doe-eyed daze in the park; no one upstairs missed his presence.

They were too busy finishing up their breakfasts as a tall woman, Coordinator Kang Yuna as Yuri could guess from the way she was ordering the band around as Jay said only _she_ could, was barking commands. Yuna spied the returning Donghae and Jaebeom the moment the door opened. She was moderately surprised that Jinki had been telling the truth that Jay had woken up without half the band screaming his ears off to get him moving. She was more surprised with what the young man was wearing. "You're going to wear that to the show?" she asked critically as she helped to disperse the coffee amongst the band members clambering for it.

"There aren't going to be any cameras, right?"

"Only our self-cam," YeongSaeng said to Yuri's relief.

Yuna frowned, displeased with the sudden lack of stylish taste on Jay's part. Usually, he worked to look his best, even when all they were doing was going out to practice at JYG headquarters. Today he was clearly wearing three different shirts that, while not horribly clashing, certainly didn't fit his customary ultra-chic styling.

Yuna shrugged though, letting it slide. They were on a tight schedule and it was her job to make sure that things went off without a hitch. She'd heard about Jay's little vanishing act from last night, how he'd barely made it to the concert in time. He'd been under Ma's direction, so Yuna didn't particularly blame the popstar himself, but the band's manger was going to get an earful from her real soon. First though she had to get these fifteen crazies to the other side of town. "Alright, guys, time to go!"

She managed to herd them all with relative speed and organization down to the two black vans allotted by JYG for QuaszauR's use. YoungJae took the keys for one while Yuna kept the others. She sent seven of the young people after YoungJae and took the rest, practically shoving them along, into the nearest of the vans. Yuri was one of the ones subject to Yuna's manhandling. She tumbled into Chansung as her feet struggled to keep up with her upper body. He caught her easily, but only proceeded to further Yuna's method by lifting her off the ground and nearly tossing her into the back of the van. She ended up sitting with Chansung directly in front of her between JiEun and SeungMi, with Kihun on her left and Jaebi and KyuJeon on her right. Riding shotgun was Dara who was in control of the fancam that she kept swiveling from face to face, commanding, "Come on guys, say hi!"

Yuri did her best to imitate the excited waves and smiles of those around her while trying to keep her face from being directly filmed. While Manager Ma was convinced that her face looked exactly like her brother's, Yuri wasn't willing to put money on that bet. Jaebi kept poking at her side and making her jump, being ticklish was one thing she couldn't pretend not to be even though she knew Jay was not. Apparently no one had ever poked Jay before, because 'his' reaction was a mild and pleasant surprise, rather than a revealing tell. It became the group game and throughout the car-ride even Dara got in on it by using an umbrella to reach down the length of the car.

The game expanded further through QuaszauR when they loaded out of the vans and the others were exposed to this new trait of Jay's that had been uncovered. Jinki in particular was thrilled by the discovery and continued to prod Yuri all the way into the radio station's recording studio. The place was amazing, so many wires, and microphones, and pieces of tecnical equipment that Yuri couldn't even begin to guess the purpose of littered an entire floor of the sky scraper.

There was a round table set up with mics and headphones and water bottles for each of them within a soundstage the size of a conference room. After taking a quick look at the name cards set around the table Dara arranged the camera she was holding up on a filing cabinet to catch both leaders in full frame that also caught more than half of the rest. The ones left out were camera-happy enough that she was sure they'd get up at least once during the afternoon to give the fans a wave.

Yuri found herself seated beside KyuJeon, down one from SooHyun, with JiEun and SeungMi on her other side marking out the places between herself and YoungJae. Like it or not she was fully within the camera's viewfinder. To best counter this, Yuri pulled the brim of Jay's hat down low over her eyes before putting on her headphones as those around her were doing. Fortunately, this didn't strike anyone as particularly unusual. Donghae, who had apparently dressed in a nice vest, tie, and dress-shirt under his hoodie, left his hat on under the headphones, as did YeongSaeng on his right; and even Kihun beside YoungJae did the same.

The fact that she wasn't sticking out too obviously made Yuri relax a bit, but only a bit. Through the headphones she could hear the music currently playing across the airwaves the channel was broadcasting on. As she was adjusting the headphones for comfort, they were quite cozy, but tricky to settle over her hat, she could hear the MC of the previous show come on. He was apparently recording from another sound-stage, but he was well aware of QuaszauR's presence as he laughed into his microphone saying, "So, you know how I've been teasing you about a little visit from QuaszauR, right? Well, they just walked through the door and are going to be here all afternoon! As they get a bit settled, here's their latest hit _Hypnotic_ to wet your appetites as you wait. With latest information on everything music, this is Mickey Z signing off, so have a good day, and I'll see you all, right back here, tomorrow."

The vibe among QuaszauR's members was so relaxed as compared to what they were like at the concert. Yuri found herself fascinated with watching their interactions as they bobbed their heads and sung along a bit to their song. She could note things that Jay had never told her. Donghae was not only great friends with YeongSaeng, but he also joked constantly with Dara, who in turn treated SeungMi with an almost motherly affection. SeungMi was the sweetest girl Yuri could remember having ever met, and she and Jaebi were munch closer than she had thought they'd be, especially considering that SeungMi wasn't the female maknae. That role belonged to MinJi, though she acted anything like the youngest of the group. Her best friends were apparently JiEun and SooHyun. Chansung, JongHyun, and Kihun were quite close to each other, and at least one of the three was constantly saying something or other to YoungJae. KyuJeon and Jinki were besties with everyone from the way they jumped into random conversations that weren't directed anywhere near them. Jinki though, was quite worrisome to Yuri's cover, because he was obviously one of Jay's closest companions. However he wasn't the brightest crayon in the box and as easily distracted as he was, Yuri managed to keep him entertained with the stories Jay had created for himself while he had been in the States with his baby sister; stories that Jay probably wouldn't have told for himself.

Yuri was so engrossed in observing her brother's bandmates that she practically jumped out of her seat when the sound-stage door swung open and a crazy looking guy with orange hair and a Hawaiian T-shirt open over a QuaszauR fandom tank ducked in. "Good luck guys, I'm a huge fan," he said. It was the voice of Mickey Z.

"We'll do our best," YoungJae promised with a polite bob of his head.

Then Mickey Z whipped out a box of doughnuts. "I brought you some snacks, trust me you'll need them. I know you've done radio shows before, but interviews and full length broadcasts are a little different."

"Oh! That's great!" Jinki chirped, taking the box off of the MC's hands. He flipped the lid open and pulled out two chocolate ones before setting the box down in the center of the table. There were a _lot_ of doughnuts in it, Yuri hadn't known they came in bulk bundles . . . She wasn't complaining though and took a chocolate for herself as she tried to ignore YeongSaeng's comment that Jay could use all the help he could get because this was his _first _radio show of any kind and the laughs the statement got from the others.

"Jaebeom," the MC said. "I saw the concert film from last night. Good Job, I didn't know you could hit that kind of note! I'll be interested to see how you do with these guys."

"Thank you, I'll do my best," Yuri replied in a squeak with a blush and a head bob.

And then Mickey Z had been kicked out by Yuna and the bright red _ON AIR_ sign lit up and suddenly YoungJae was talking. "Hey everyone! We are QuaszauR, and we are coming to you live from SMZ Studios!"

SooHyun took over. "We've got our newest member here and he's all fired up, if a bit shy, and we're all waiting to take your questions, so start sending them in now. Operators are standing by if you want to call in, or drop us a line on ."

"So let's get the ball rolling with the latest from SS501, this is _Love Ya_," JongHyun finished up, pressing the play button. The _ON AIR _sign darkened and Yuri could hear the opening beat pound through her headphones. She pulled the ear bit off of one ear, as she saw the others do and waited.

Nothing happened.

At all.

There was a bit of quiet conversation, like there had been before they'd gone on the air. A couple of jokes and smiles, but nothing else, nothing note worthy.

Yuri finished her doughnut and with the lack of any better option presenting itself, she took another. One song ended and Donghae introduced the next. More quiet conversation. By Yuri's third doughnut, she understood why Mickey Z was the same measure around his belly as he was tall . . . she put her half eaten third down with a guilty glance at the amazing figures of the girls around her and grabbed her water bottle to sip on.

Things got a little more interesting when the Q&A session began but they only came during the five minute spurts between songs. Most of the questions were directed at the established members so Yuri got to learn a lot about her current companions. Jaebi was apparently left handed on Wednesdays . . . and superstitious enough to impose such a hefty task on himself. SeungMi hated oranges; their taste, their shape, their texture, their color, everything. KyuJeon's favorite movie was an American space-western. YeongSaeng had forty-two pairs of fuzzy slippers. Donghae honestly didn't know how many hats he owned . . .

Still the bulk of the afternoon was spent in soft, small scale conversations that were interesting to watch, but still really dull. Yuri was glad though, that she wasn't expected to do much. Jay had to admit that he'd been scared of the dark until he was nine and that if he _ever_ had to go camping again he'd have to break his leg to get out of it, and if it really came down to that he would do it without hesitation. Other than that her day was quiet, a relief to say the least.

She watched as YeongSaeng got up and walked around a bit, hovering behind KyuJeon who was leaned back over the swiveling chair with his arms flailing in the general direction of his Hyung. Kihun came to the side of the table that could be seen by the camera as well, and he and SooHyun made hilarious faces at it, even convincing KyuJeon to join in with them. Donghae came over too, though rather than hovering or playing directly to the camera, he'd produced a pack of small skittle like candies that he proceeded to toss into the mouths of waiting members. Jinki had to try three times to actually catch one. Dara not only caught hers the first time but she managed to use a folded piece of paper to swat one back to Donghae.

Dara didn't get up to wave to the camera, though she was usually one of the most excited to greet the fans. YoungJae usually had to make sure that shy SeungMi and Chansung got a little camera time, but today he was worrying about one of his most vocal members. Well, two of them. Jay was being unusually quiet too, and actually it appeared as though he was responsible for Dara's subdued behavior. She spent the afternoon staring at him, trying to pick him apart as he merely observed conversations rather than his customary, Jinki like participation in several of them at once. There were so many little things, the way he sat, the way he kept sipping at his water-bottle with a small smile, the way he watched everyone by moving his eyes rather than his head . . . a million little things that just didn't quite match up with his pretty face as she knew it.

The only thing that got the band truly interested was one of the last questions of the day. At least a thousand fans wanted to hear Jaebeom sing _I Believe_, and they were all being very vocal about it, as Yuna related went she brought the latest list of requests in from the operators buzzing away at their work outside the sound-stage.

"Oh, come on!" Donghae prodded when Yuri tried out the excuse Manager Ma had given her. "Everyone has to sing it eventually, it's a classic! Besides, you did well enough with it on your audition tape and that was after a _long _day of practice, much worse than the concert last night!"

As a new song needed to be introduced, Donghae took the honor from JongHyun, saying, "Here's an old favorite, if you don't know it you need to do a little research on your music history. Oh, and up next, I promise that we'll convince Jay to give you guys a bit of solo singing." His wink could be heard though the airwaves even by those who'd never heard him speak before.

"No really, the fans would definitely rather that I just pass on this one," Yuri tried to defend, at her next opportunity to talk without being heard by half the country.

Yuna came in then and, without a moment's consideration, stated, "The fans want to hear you sing. You are going to sing. Take a cough drop for your sore throat."

Yuri was panicking. She wasn't Jay, and though in a concert it was hard to hear, her voice was definitely different than her brother's, regardless of what Manager Ma had said about them. But there was another stumbling block; she didn't know the words to _I Believe_. She couldn't actually remember having heard it before. But she _must_ have her brother's audition tape in her email, right?

"Bathroom first?" she pleaded.

Yuna eyed the three empty water bottles resting in front of Jay and reluctantly said, "Make it quick."

Nodding, Yuri jumped up and tossed her headphones aside and bolted though the radio station's offices. She actually did need to use the restroom, but it was not the main reason for her haste. She lost at least ten seconds, trying to decide how deep her cover should be and if it was really worth using the men's bathroom, but then she pushed those thoughts aside and just kept her eyes down as she went in.

Fortunately, no one was in there and she could use her time in peace as she pulled out her cell phone and fished through her email for the needed video. She watched it three times in rapid succession to get a feel for the tune, thanking god she had saved it, and sent herself a text message with the lyrics on it. Hopefully, she could read them off her phone without raising too much suspicion.

Those hopes were soon dashed as Dara eyed her very closely when she got back. Even Jinki seemed very interested in her phone. It was Jaebi though that made her realize her mistake. "When'd you get that charm, I thought yours was green."

"Oh . . . uh . . . my, um, sister sent me this one."

"Oh, really?" SooHyun said with a slight giggle and a pointed glance at her peers. Yuri didn't notice as she was trying to get her headphones back on before the song playing came to an end. The rest of the group eyed her warily, wondering if it was the girlfriend, sister, or some other explanation altogether. And then it was time for her to sing.

YeongSaeng introduced her and started up the music. Her first notes were a bit rocky, mostly because she didn't know the opening words, as the only way she could get the rest of the song to fit on the tiny screen of her phone was to cut a few of them off. Jaebi and Jinki weren't exactly helpful to her concentration as they chirped little cheers into their mics at the pause between the first and second verses, but they did help her confidence a bit. Their joking manner helped relax her, showing that this was an environment where jokes were welcome as opposed to the high stress atmosphere of the concert.

It allowed her to sing the rest of the song quite decently, leaving her head only a bit buzzy as the final notes trailed off.

She indulged in another doughnut to celebrate her mild success. Due to her high from success at not-screwing-up-utterly, Yuri didn't notice that the way Dara was staring at her had changed. Within the hour the band had signed off and was getting ready to go, but Dara had other plans.

As the rest of the band was cleaning up, she grabbed Yuri's elbow and dragged her with surprising force outside and around a few corners. "We _have _to talk," she stated as Yuri began to panic.

This trend of panic-relax-panic was not good for her, Yuri could tell. Her blood pressure was going to _skyrocket_ from this little international escapade. If she had a heart attack at 24, she'd blame Jay all the way to her early grave.

Yuri stared mutely at Dara, who took it as signal to continue. "That charm on your cell phone, Jay didn't get it from his sister. He got it _for _her; I helped him pick it out. Now either you start explaining what's going on or I'm telling YoungJae that you aren't who you say you are."

For a moment Yuri didn't know what to feel. Terror, relief, somewhere between those two polar opposites was where Yuri's feelings lay. When Dara finished her little stare-down, outraged at the temerity of this mute impostor, she spun on her heel ready to march back to YoungJae.

Pressure on her elbow made her stop. "I'm Yuri, Jay's little sister. Jay's hurt, he's still in Japan. Things happened and this was the only thing the idiot could think of to make sure that no one's career was destroyed by his mistake, including his own."

Dara then encountered a similar emotional turmoil. Should she believe this girl? The charm didn't _prove_ she was Jay's sister after all . . . but on the other hand; Jay was hurt? How? When? "But why didn't he tell us? We're his family!"

"Heck, I'm his _blood_ relative _and _his replacement, and he didn't even tell _me_," Yuri said, wondering if there was more to Dara's perceptiveness and concern than mere familial ties. Yuri herself had been furious when she'd figured things out, not teary eyed.

"How hurt is he?"

"Well, he says it's not too bad," Yuri promised. "And that he'll be back in a few days, but the doctors aren't completely sure yet."

"But why didn't he call?"

"I don't know."

Dara was struggling to reconcile this information in her mind. Jay had always been one to do his own thing, go off on his own for extra practice, to do another promotion, to sign a few more autographs . . . but he'd always called to let them know where he'd be and when he'd be back.

"Wait a second," Dara said slowly, thinking over Yuri's testimony. "He had to have told you, you _replaced _him! At the concert . . . ?"

"When security hauled me down those stairs I thought I was being abducted by a mob boss!"

Thinking over everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours, Dara had to admit it explained a lot. "So it's Jay in the hospital, and that's why you were so . . . um, no offence, bad at your own songs."

"None taken, I was honestly just glad that the crowd didn't start throwing food at me! I can't tell you how terrified I was when I realized we were on stage that first time!" Yuri explained, decidedly feeling relief over terror now. In fact she was so thrilled with the idea that someone else knew about her little charade that she was bold enough to ask, "About this, are you going to tell anyone?"

"Of course, I have to."

"But Jay will be kicked out of QuaszauR, and Manager Ma will lose his job as well, and I'll probably be blacklisted by the Korean government as a spy . . ."

"Why would they lose their positions at JYG?"

Yuri sighed; she was hoping that she wouldn't have to explain this bit, mostly because she still didn't completely understand it. "Apparently Jay was doing this extra show as a favor to the manager. Because he fell and couldn't perform, and it was Manager Ma's fault, the manager wouldn't be allowed to continue with the agency. And Jay's contract is still in wet ink . . . he could be dropped from the band on a moment's notice . . ."

Dara's mouth formed a perfect little 'o' and she stared hard at Yuri trying to ascertain the truth to her words. As it was all the truth Yuri knew, Dara could find no deception, but as to whether the outsider knew really anything about the situation . . . Dara couldn't account for.

"Please, Dara-ssi, my brother has worked so hard for this chance . . . I couldn't just let him lose his shot because he did a favor to the manager."

"Fine." Dara said quietly, "I won't tell anyone yet, except Jaebi. He was there with Jay and me when we bought that charm, he's an idiot, but eventually he'll remember."

Now, Yuri was completely overwhelmed with relief. "Thank you Dara-ssi, it's only for a few more days."

"And in those days we have a press conference and practice sessions to deal with, so you'd better be ready to work," Dara said, trying to think of another way Jay could have done this. She couldn't, admittedly, but that still didn't make his choice a good one. Even not calling sort of made sense, YoungJae or SooHyun would be obligated to tell the president, or at least Coordinator Yuna about what was going on, and if Yuri was right that would cost two people their livelihoods.

"I'll do my best, but I'm not Jay . . . Things may go downhill fast if I have to do too many acrobatic maneuvers," Yuri said, honestly.

"You do look just like him though," Dara said, standing back to look at her.

Yuri sighed. "What are you talking about? I'm at least a foot shorter, my face is much narrower, my eyes curl up more at the edges, and I have a _much_ smaller forehead; we don't look anything alike!"

With a shrug that told of perfectly understanding the Kim family's streak of stubbornness, Dara stated, "You're going to need my help, and probably Jaebi's too, if you want to pull this off."

"Thank you Dara-ssi! Jay thanks you too, trust me."

"It's just Dara, or you'll get caught before we get this started."

Yuri nodded as Dara led her back to the rest of the group. YoungJae demanded where they'd been, after all they had simply disappeared for a substantial bit of time. To Yuri's massive confusion, Dara said simply, "We saw the cat and started to chase it down. He got away, though."

The others of QuaszauR just nodded, they knew of the legendary SMZ cat. It was supposedly good luck to see it and better luck to catch it, but though he had been spotted many times, no SMZ guest had ever caught it. The explanation passed without question.

It also passed when Dara pulled Jay aside, whining, "Come on Jay, you promised you'd show Jaebi and me what choreography you're planning on using for your next solo!"

Though it was news to Jaebi, he gladly jumped on board. "I wanna see _Pretty Girl_! You won't do it in practice ever, come on, please?"

"Oh, fine," Yuri ad-libbed, trying to imitate her brother's cocky confidence. Dara gave a grin that could have passed for genuine pleasure or reassurance that Yuri was doing a good job and dragged the impersonator off with Jaebi following close at their heels.

The practice halls at JYG headquarters were only a few blocks away, so even YoungJae was fine with letting the young contingent of his band wander off there alone. A few of the other members hesitated, torn between wanting to see Jay's top-secret dance and using their limited free time to their own ends. It was Kihun that decided things for them. "I'm making dinner whether they're home to eat it or not," he said, adding, "They'll just have to microwave theirs."

Kihun's cooking was amazing; putting off seeing Jay's dance was an easy decision when such good food was the counter option.

Along the way to the practice hall though, Jaebi noticed that something was up. Mostly in that Dara had been so disheartened around Jay since the concert and now she was almost as buddy-buddy with him as she was with Donghae . . . and her attitude seemed similar to how she treated SeungMi . . . and then there was how Jay seemed so odd lately, with no exception in this case. Jaebi wasn't disrespectful enough to openly question his elders, but his confused pout was unmistakable under the scrutiny that the bright lights and three walls of mirrors provided.

"Jaebi, come here for a moment," Dara ordered. The maknae did as he was told, standing back to back with his hyung and looking at their reflection in the mirrors. To his surprise and massive confusion, he was only a hand-span shorter than the older boy.

"Yuri-ssi, stop standing up so straight, Jay always slouches," Dara commanded, and suddenly Jaebi and his hyung were the same height exactly.

"Yuri-ssi?" He questioned, unable to hold his tongue.

Dara nodded, it had been her plan to get Jaebi to question things himself before she explained it all, but she'd never thought he'd need _this_ much prodding to speak up. "This isn't Jay, it's his baby sister."

"What?"

Jaebi's blank look was so cute; Yuri found herself grinning even as she launched into the explanation for the second time that day.

When she finished, Dara added in a few clarifying details and said, "So, it's _our_ job to whip her into good enough shape to pass for Jay in practice. Any questions?"

"One: why exactly is this injury career threatening for two people?"

"I'm not entirely sure on that . . . but now that they've gotten this thing started if it's revealed now they'll be fired for sure, for lying to the President about this whole thing," Dara explained.

"Manager Ma and Jay aren't logistical geniuses, I don't think they saw how doing this would only make things worse for them," Yuri added.

Jaebi nodded, processing the information. He digested it much more quickly than Dara had, asking only one more question, "So Donghae-hyungnim was right? Jay doesn't have a girlfriend?"

"That I'm aware of Jay has never even _wanted_ a girlfriend, at least not seriously. He's just a chronic flirt," Yuri asserted.

The announcement went over well and soon Jaebi and Dara were completely absorbed in teaching Yuri the finer points of Jay's dances, especially the ones he hadn't shown her via webcam yet. The training session lasted for hours, and Yuri grew to appreciate her brother's astounding work ethic fairly quickly. She was about dried up before darkness had even fully settled, and she knew Jay had spent many long nights of practice in these rooms all alone. She only wished that she could match up to him.

When it was clear that Yuri was too tired for more training to be fruitful, Dara called the session to a stop. "We'll have to sneak out here again in the morning, you're doing well, but Jay was brought on because he could dance, as well as sing. Oh, and make sure that when you sing in practice you keep to Jay's usual octave, you have a very nice voice, but unless you make sure you only hit the notes that Jay can . . . "

"We'll all be in for it," Yuri finished. "Thanks for doing this guys."

"No problem, Jay's worked hard for this and we're his family now, we've got to help our own out," Jaebi said proudly. He liked being in on the secret, it made him feel special and like he really mattered to the group as more than just the maknae with the image of cuteness.

The trio headed home, slipping quietly into the dorm so as not to wake the others. They faced the company of only YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, and Donghae as the incoming three heated up some dinner and they chatted amiably while they ate. Donghae wasn't as openly curious as YeongSaeng and KyuJeon were as too Jay's odd behavior and why Dara and Jaebi suddenly seemed unconcerned by it, but he was certainly caught observing the young man closely on more than one occasion.

Plans were quietly confirmed for an early morning practice among the three concerned and then it was bedtime for everyone. Yuri was glad to slip under the covers. She was exhausted. It was better than last night, but still it had been a very long day. Yuri was quickly lulled into sleep by the familiar and long-missed smell of her brother that clung to his sheets.

In the morning, Yuri was up by seven, fully refreshed and ready for another intensive training session. As she made herself a bit of breakfast from dinner's leftovers while she waited for Dara and Jaebi, she heard voices coming down the hall that clearly didn't belong to them. Acting on pure adrenaline, Yuri grabbed her makeshift breakfast and ducked into the space under the kitchen's island just as Donghae and SeungMi walked in.

"It's just weird," SeungMi was saying to Donghae. "Jaebi's barely talking to me. He turned down going to the pet store this morning, to hang out with Jay and Dara!"

"That is odd," Donghae said. Jaebi loved spending the day with SeungMi and the adorable little creatures at the pet store. He'd always wanted a puppy or something, but dorm life wasn't good for animals and he'd had to make due visiting them on his days off. That he'd refused to go today was actually quite worrisome.

To soothe SeungMi's fears that Jay's odd behavior was contagious, Donghae took a relaxed stand point on the situation. "They're probably just amazed with Jay's new dance. Once they get the moves down he'll be back to normal."

His assertion only partially alleviated her concerns. What was she supposed to do now? Going alone to the pet store would be boring; and Jinki and KyuJeon, the only other people who'd want to go with her, wouldn't be up for hours yet!

Donghae was able to read as much on her face. Reaching into the refrigerator for a bottle of water, he suggested, "If you're bored you could come out with me."

SeungMi wrinkled her nose as Donghae adjusted his hoodie. "Jogging in this heat? Wearing a sweatshirt and a hat? No, thank you."

"Suit yourself," Donghae replied, sliding on his sunglasses and heading out the door. When he had left, SeungMi stood staring after him, unsure of what she should do now.

She decided to make herself some breakfast. SeungMi spent the next twenty minutes whipping something up as Yuri hid below the island's counter top. The hidden girl watched SeungMi's slim legs travel back and forth in front of her quickly chosen niche. Eventually, SeungMi finished making whatever it was she'd been busying herself with and trotted off to her bedroom. Yuri waited a moment to make sure that she'd gone before crawling out to finish her breakfast.

Ten minutes later she was joined by Jaebi, and then by Dara. The three left quickly after eating, not wanting to risk the others waking up. They warmed up as they walked across the quad to JYG headquarters, they needed all the practice time they could get, so being efficient was imperative.

Apparently, the dormitory had a back door, because when the trio opened the door to their practice room, SeungMi was waiting for them and Yuri was _sure_ that she hadn't gone out the front. She was sitting at the far end on the pile of mats used for practicing the gymnastic elements of the dances while the performers were still learning them. Her doe eyes were huge as she stared at her elders. "I'm sorry," she said. "It's just I . . ."

Dara sighed. "Well, I suppose we should tell you, it's not like Jaebi will be able to keep his mouth shut very long anyway, not when you're wearing a face like that. Yuri-ssi, go ahead."

Yuri nodded and, yet again, launched into the explanation. By now she had it down and could reasonably lay everything out in less than five minutes.

"Jay's . . . hurt?"

Wondering why that was the first question _everyone _asked, herself included, Yuri nodded, "He'll be in Japan for at least another day. He said he'll give me a call soon."

"And you don't know any of Jay's new dances?"

"Not really," Yuri said sheepishly. "Dara and Jaebi have been trying to teach me . . . but I don't think I'm really getting them."

Dara jumped in, "Jay took just as long to learn them as you are, and they were _designed_ around his abilities. You're doing fine."

"But we are running out of time," Jaebi commented.

Dara clapped her hands together decisively. "Right, so now it's down to business. Yuri, remember what we did yesterday? I wanna see how much of it you can do without any reminders." She waited for Yuri to get ready and then hit play on _Hypnotic_, watching her movements carefully.

"That wasn't too bad," SeungMi said when Yuri finished.

Agreeing, Dara added, "But Jay's usually spectacular."

"So, tell me what I'm doing wrong," Yuri said, a good sport all around. Jay was going to know hell for making her work this hard, but she would give it her best until he came back from Japan.

Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi set to work right away. It was slow going because Jay had such a unique style that to imitate it was extremely difficult. It was the back flip, Jay's signature move, that had Yuri the most frustrated. She lost count of how many times she came crashing down onto the mats, which weren't half as soft as they seemed before you fell on them. Eventually though, she managed to achieve a level of moderate proficiency by four pm.

Considering how long they had worked for, Yuri felt that only becoming decent was quite close to utter failure. Their only break had been for lunch, and that only half an hour at a noodle shop across the street. Yuri was a perfectionist, like her brother in the way that anything she did would be done right. And she was also just like Jay in how she wanted to do things as best she could, _without_ inconveniencing others. Jay worked on his own for hours, and Yuri was more than tempted to follow suit. Only, she had much less stamina than Jay and was already so exhausted she could barely walk in a straight line.

* * *

**A/N: **Thanks for reading!


	3. Practice Makes, um, Closeish to Perfect

**A/N:** I know this story's kind of gotten off to a slow start, but I tried to write it in the style of the early 2010's kdramas, so bear with it a just a while long, things will begin to heat up very quickly soon!

* * *

Dara was the one who called the practice to a stop, much to Yuri's protests. The experienced popstar hushed the replacement. "We have a press conference in three hours. If the guest of honor at that conference falls asleep during it, we'll have more problems than the band possibly noticing that Jay's acting a little weird. You've been weird for two days now; no one will care if you sit quietly and answer questions with the shortest possible replies. However, people _will _notice if you outright collapse."

"Dara's right. You've been weird enough to make more weirdness normal," SeungMi said, in what she hoped was a helpful way. It sounded odd to reason that weird had become normal and thus killing yourself for normal would be weird.

Jaebi suggested, "Right now what you should do is go home, take a shower, and then take a _nap_. Trust me it'll help."

"That's actually a great idea," Dara commented.

Jaebi stretched his arms out over his head. This had been a pretty light practice for him, seeing as the role of teacher had been split between the three pop stars and it hadn't been anything horribly intensive, unlike the body-sculpting training sessions they were occasionally subject to. "So, while _you're_ taking a nap . . . is anyone up for going to see Ga In?"

"I'm in!" SeungMi said immediately, looking forward to seeing the adorable dog's squished face. She added, "Should we go get KyuJeon?"

"And Jinki!" Jaebi added. The two paused for barely a second before racing out of the practice halls to harass their bandmates.

As Yuri and Dara followed at a slower pace, Dara eyed Yuri's figure. She walked in a much more delicate manner than Jay, and really she looked nothing like him now that Dara was paying that kind of attention to her, and there was the clincher point of gender. "You have to wrap your chest up for tonight," Dara stated suddenly.

Yuri blinked, trying to process the command. Her mind had been on the warm air and the sparkling city and how she should be heading home soon . . . "What?"

"When you're on your own and no one really gives you a second glance you can pass as a guy in one or two over-size T-shirts, but when you're with guys who are _actually_ guys and you're the center of attention . . . " Dara clarified, "Besides, under the lights tonight, you'll regret it if you wear more than one T-shirt. You can take a jacket, Jay loves that leather one you wore to the concert, but I doubt you'll suffer through wearing it for long."

"At least _someone_ thinks I don't look like a guy," Yuri said with a grin mixed with relief and worry. "I was starting to wonder about that from how well this whole faking-it thing has been going for me."

"It's still going to be a problem, even if you wrap yourself, but hopefully we can keep the questions to a minimum," Dara said as they neared the dorms. "So, shower, nap, and make sure you pick light clothes that, uh . . . suit you."

The others looked up as the two entered the dorm. Several of the members were missing from the common room, presumably with Jaebi and SeungMi at a nearby pet store. The rest went back to whatever they were doing, except for Chansung who called out, "Jay! You've become the most searched term on YouTube! The fans _love_ that you're ticklish." He chuckled at the end.

Kihun elbowed him, as they were sitting squished together on a single chair in front of a computer he was easily able to do so. "It's good that they like him, for whatever reason, but the _concert_, not the car or our radio show, is the most watched video under Jay's name. Though the part where you sang _I Believe_ is a close second, Jay."

"You did good, kid," YoungJae said, from where he sat on the couch. "The fans really seem to like you."

SooHyun, having taken his moment of distraction to seize the television's remote control, added as she waved her prize out of YoungJae's reach, "Keep it up for tonight."

"I'll do my best," Yuri replied as she watched SeungMi squeeze onto the couch between a giggling MinJi and a despondent YoungJae, who stared forlornly at the remote in SooHyun's hand as she flipped through the channels.

Yuri went to Jay's room and went again though all of his clothes. She needed to figure out what to wear for the press conference. Dara had warned her about the heat of the lights, but she still needed something to cover up her shape. Yuri found the perfect solution in a backless cargo vest. It had enough pockets to hide anything odd about her shape, and if it were worn over only one cotton layer of T-shirt, it would be perfectly cool. Cool enough to even get away with wearing a stylized fedora with a brim that could cover the worst of the disparities between her face and Jay's. Her brother's watch was huge on her so she decided that it'd be best to 'forget' it when they left for the press conference.

With a red shirt, the black denim vest, and jeans to match, _and _the suspenders Yuri needed to keep them up, she slunk out of her brother's room to the nearest bathroom, where she took a quick shower. After drying off, she headed back to Jay's room and laid down for a quick nap. All too soon, Dara was at her side, shaking her awake. Yuri found herself jealous of Dara for all of two seconds, the popstar was dressed in a gorgeous flirty black dress and Yuri wanted to wear such a thing to a public event like this. However she wasn't even going as a _girl_, let alone one as pretty as Dara.

The moment soon passed and Yuri was back to the business of being her brother. Coordinator Yuna hurried them all out to the vans, where Manager Ma was waiting. He was actually wearing nice clothes, a casual suit jacket that almost fit him right and even a tie. Yuri began to wonder if she was under-dressed for the occasion, but she noted that besides the manager and Dara, only SooHyun and YoungJae were dressed up, and additionally only YeongSaeng, Donghae, and KyuJeon were in suits at all. For Donghae and YeongSaeng it was obviously their customary style choice, and even KyuJeon seemed perfectly accustomed to the casual sport coat. Kihun and Chansung were both dressed similarly to Yuri, chiq coats of some sort over a regular t-shirt, though Kihun was wearing more necklaces than Yuri owned. It was JiEun though that calmed Yuri's fears completely, because she was wearing cropped blue sweats and an off-the-shoulder knit poncho over a camisole, like she was going to the mall or something. If she, gorgeous as she was, could reasonably wear that, Jay could wear a vest and a T-shirt.

Coordinator Yuna didn't say anything to her as Yuri was shuffled into one of the vans so she assumed that this outfit was much more acceptable than the one she'd worn yesterday.

The conference hall was inside a hotel. Yuri had been expecting it to be in like a newspaper's headquarters or something, but no, it was a hotel's event room. Four stylists were responsible for handling the make-up of all fifteen members and it took them right up until the start of the conference to get everyone looking just so. When they were satisfied, Yuri followed at Dara's shoulder as they were lead out onto a makeshift stage with a long table set for the fifteen of them. There were nameplates for each member, so Yuri found herself torn from Dara's side. In fact she wasn't even able to sit off to one side of the stage where she could hide from the cameras; she was stuck right in the middle, between YoungJae and SooHyun. This press conference was about 'her' after all.

That statement hadn't really sunk in for Yuri until she sat down in front of a massive audience of reporters at the center of the table. This conference was about the addition of the new member, and the new member was the center of attention. It was only the smile of reassurance Yuri got from staring in terror at Dara that let her remain seated when the only thing she wanted to do was run from the stage as fast as she could. This is for Jay, she thought, for all of his hard work. Oh, she was going to _kill_ him when he came back from Japan.

Staring at the microphone placed before her, which was just like the ones marking out every seat at the table, Yuri began to tap her fingers nervously. There were just so many people staring at her, and she had to trick every single one of them into thinking she was her brother. Suddenly, Donghae appeared at her shoulder.

"I'm starting to regret nabbing this for you," he said with a laugh, adding, "It looks like what you need now is _anything_ but caffeine. Stop tapping, you'll look weak."

Yuri quit tapping instantly, though she couldn't keep herself completely still and her foot began to twitch. Fortunately it was beneath the tablecloth, and no one could see it.

"That's better," Donghae said with a nod. Then he handed over an iced mocha latte with a grin as he sipped his own. The smile that spread across Jay's face was extremely gratifying, even more so than when he'd first gotten SeungMi to smile onstage. Donghae had never thought that he would have needed to work with Jay like this, but while he was he saw no reason not to revel in his successes. "And your hat's not right," Donghae said, his grin spreading as he chuckled and tipped Jay's hat forward so that it played off his features better.

"Donghae, sit down," YoungJae commanded quietly.

Nodding, Donghae submitted to his leader's order, but first he gave Jay a pat on the back, saying, "Try not to make yourself look like an idiot."

As Donghae reached his seat, Manager Ma took the stage with a handheld mic and some note cards clutched in his hand. He looked as nervous as Yuri felt. Well, had felt. Somehow, Donghae had managed to calm her down. Now, she listened with interest as the manager thanked the reporters for coming and introduced leader YoungJae.

YoungJae thanked him as Ma shuffled off stage, and very professionally began his opening speech, "As you know, we've recently debuted our fifteenth member. Many people have questioned why we decided to add on yet another singer to our already large group. It's already hard enough to get to know us as individuals within such a large band, but really _that_'s why we added Kim Jaebeom. We felt it pressing to even out our numbers so that we could split into three even subgroups, each with five members. Each sub-group will have a unique sound that will appeal to certain audiences, and they will be able to learn who we each are on the small scale. We are in no way splitting up, as many other groups have created subgroups for a similar purpose before us."

Here SooHyun took over, going into an explanation of the subgroups. QuaszauR Mellow was the first introduced, with each member standing as the female leader announced, "Leader Kim YoungJae, Kang Kihun, Song Jinki, Heo KyuJeon, and Choi Jaejin; mellow will be QuaszauR's ballad group, focusing on the slower songs and more intricate and technical vocal patterns." She went into more detail about the kind of songs to be expected from Mellow and the positions of each of the members in the group. When she had finished, the members were allowed to be seated again.

Following the same pattern, YoungJae introduced QuaszauR Sweet, the girl group that would tackle more upbeat songs than Mellow, but songs that still would have calm parts to them and minimal rap. Lee SooHyun would lead Choi JiEun, Lee SeungMi, Jung Dara, and Ahn MinJi in what essentially stood to be the all-around subgroup with songs that appealed to anyone.

SooHyun took the speech again, explaining the final group, QuaszauR Action. Action was the high octane group, with fast paced songs with lots of adrenaline running through them. There would be acrobatic dances and lots of rap and the complicated weaving of quick lyrics. Led by Choi JongHyun, the group consisted of Park Chansung, Hwan Donghae, Park YeongSaeng, and Kim Jaebeom. Yuri nearly forgot to stand when her brother's name was called, but the crisis was averted by a subtle movement from Dara who sat just on the other side of SooHyun.

After Action had been introduced and they were allowed to sit down again, YoungJae began to talk about the new EP, expected to come out in just over a month. "On _HeartQuake_, there will be three songs we've already released, and three full band songs that are new. Additionally, there will be a song from each subgroup, _and _new solo's by YeongSaeng, Donghae, and Jaebeom. We'll be releasing a video for the title song _HeartQuake_, and for each of the Subgroups' first songs, though the ones for the subgroups will be released several months after the album is. Also, we are planning on releasing a behind-the-scenes kind of music video to Jaebeom's _Pretty Girl, _which is the title of the new solo he is working on, composed by himself and Donghae. It's still being tweaked right now, so no previews will be released. Also, at the concert in three days, Jaebeom will debut new choreography for _Only For You_, film from which, and from the practices leading up to it, will serve as his introductory video to the fans."

There YoungJae traded off again with SooHyun. She talked more about what would be included in the album, namely the pictures from an exclusive, yet to be taken, photo-shoot which wouldn't be released ever again in the foreseeable future. And then it was time for the band to answer questions. Yuri received the brunt of the questions, everything from her favorite food to her worst subject in school was asked about, well, Jay's aspects. The only question that gave her pause was one of the last ones she was asked, "Why did you come to be a singer with QuaszauR, since you were born in the US and all, and you weren't scouted there?"

She had to think hard for this one, to get into Jay's mentality. "I suppose it's because I've always loved to sing, so I was willing to work exceptionally hard to find the best way to become a professional. My mother was a singer, one who failed to make her living from her love. She discouraged me from going after my dream, as her career had failed. But I always fought with her about it and when she . . . gave up working to keep the family together like she had given up singing, I guess I took it as meaning that so long as I didn't give up, I could make it eventually. So I didn't give up. Korea's music industry had been on my radar from a young age, so when I managed to get away from home, it was the first place I came to try my luck." And then because she could, Yuri gave herself a little pat on the back, "Training with JYG Entertainment was the hardest thing I have ever done, even if it was worth all the hard work to make it into QuaszauR. I really could never have done it without my little sister, Yuri has been there all along, lending me moral support and encouragement. I owe her _sooo_ much, especially recently as I've had to tackle this concert. It was a huge step for me and she was right there to help me through it. She and my new QuaszauR family are really amazing people."

There were a few more questions, but none that made Yuri worry. And from the looks she managed to shoot Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi in between them, she saw that they approved of her little joke. Then the questions shifted to the others, prying into the mysteries of the other's songs and lives. The questioning wasn't as intense as it had been for Yuri, but that was only to be expected. The early questions had been intended to get the press acquainted with the new member, Yuri was sure that the others had all gone through the same thing already.

Donghae faced a lot of questions about his upcoming solo, mostly because he refused to give any valid information on it. His answers were all vague and mysterious, only serving to heighten the reporters' curiosity. Even at the end of the conference, Donghae had managed to keep secret even the song's name.

"You haven't even told _us_ yet," JongHyun complained as they stepped off stage.

YeongSaeng snickered, saying, "It's because he hasn't written it yet, that's why he's been so mysterious."

Jinki was shocked. "What, really?"

"I have a month left to work on it," Donghae said casually.

"Three weeks," YeongSaeng corrected.

"Nearly a month, then," he amended.

"And that's when the album _comes out_, you've only got _one_ week before we do the _final _recordings," YeongSaeng added. Donghae just shrugged.

KyuJeon asked his with a hint of knowing behind his wide-eyes, "Have you even started working on it, yet?"

At this YeongSaeng laughed outright, and Donghae actually ducked his head a bit in something akin to shame. "Nope, I've been busy working with YeongSaeng on his solo, and on Jay's."

"You've written Jay's at this point, right?" YoungJae commented, with only a hint of worry in his voice. Donghae had never been one to work well with assigned deadlines, but he always managed to get everything done by the concert.

"Jay's is done, I finished his first. He just has to learn how to sing it now," Donghae said, back to full confidence. "And if I may say so, _Pretty Girl_ is a _great_ song. I'm actually kinda jealous that it's your solo, Jay, so you'd better do it well."

Yuri promised to do her best, and felt her terror rise for a moment as Donghae gave her a weird look. Soon the mood was dispelled by Dara as she flung an arm over each Yuri and Donghae, saying, "The next song you write, Donghae, had better be a solo for me!"

"You can write your own songs," Donghae complained. "Why do I have to do it for you?"

Dara pouted. "Jay can write his own songs, but you still wrote him_ Pretty Girl_, why can't you write me one?"

The good natured banter continued on the ride home. YeongSaeng and Yuri were in the unfortunate position of being squeezed in the back seat between the two. Yuri actually liked it. She joined in a few times as the argument progressed from Donghae's laziness to his obsession with hats, defending Donghae of course. Because of that Dara turned the tables and began picking at Jay's ticklishness, which meant that both YeongSaeng and Donghae began poking Yuri, Dara and each other like mad. From the seat in front of them, KyuJeon, SeungMi, and Jaebi watched, throwing out the occasional comment as they discussed who was winning the tickle war. From the front seat, JongHyun narrated the events to the driving YoungJae as he made sure his hand held camera caught the chaos from every angle.

When they arrived at the dorms, the energy of the group began to simmer down. It was late after all, and press conferences were always draining affairs. A quick supper and it was off to bed, though they could have stayed up talking for hours. They had practice early tomorrow and very few of the members were morning people.

Yuri went to bed right after Dara. She only felt the full force of her exhaustion when she curled up in Jay's bed for the night. It had been a _long_ day, but certainly it had been kinda fun too. She stretched out under the cool sheets, feeling her muscles slowly relax. Then pulling her knees back to her chest, she drifted off to sleep.

It was barely six when Yuri woke the next morning. Yet somehow, with only seven and a half hours of sleep, she felt more refreshed than she had in a long while. Her muscles were a bit stiff, and she was sore from her many falls the day before, but she couldn't remember having ever felt so nice the morning after such a killer workout.

The one thing she decided that she didn't like about Korea, Yuri noted as she quietly shuffled though the cabinets in QuaszauR's kitchen, was the severe lack of breakfasty foods. Seriously, how could a household of any sort have an entire kitchen void of cereal? No waffles, no pancake mix, no bacon . . . the only thing suitably breakfast like Yuri could find were eggs, and they would be an annoying production to whip up. With the morning practice scheduled for eight thirty, Yuri headed out try her luck looking for a nearby cafe. She took her cell phone, having made sure to give Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi the number for it during their practice session the day before.

She borrowed her 'disguise' look from Donghae; hoodie, hat, and shades. Her main advantage was that she didn't actually look like Jay anyway, so as long as she didn't get caught _trying_ to hide her face, she could stand right next to her brother's picture and no one would give her a second glance. Fortunately for her, hats were stylish, the sun was bright, and the morning was cool enough to make a sweatshirt almost reasonable.

It wasn't too hard to find a neat little coffee house, and within ten minutes of ceding defeat in QuaszauR's dorm, Yuri sat with a mug of tea and giant chocolate chip muffin as she watched people milling about outside. She sent a voicemail to Manager Ma, asking him about what she should do with her stuff at the hotel, seeing as her check out time was supposed to be at noon that day. Then she sent her brother a string of text messages about how much trouble he was in for when he got back.

Her rant of messages containing exactly 160 characters was interrupted when he called her. She answered with a disbelieving grin. "You're up early."

"I turned my cell back on . . . for Manager Ma to text me the details about your performance as me," Jay said drowsily, adding, "It's not on vibrate."

"Oh," Yuri said, almost guilty.

Her feeling turned around when Jay asked, "So what is it you're texting away to me about?"

"I was just detailing how many little pieces I was going to cut you up into when you got back here," Yuri responded.

Jay laughed. "So how's it going over there? I saw the press conference footage, I just _love_ my baby sister, don't I?"

"Yes, Yuri has helped you make your dream come true," Yuri said with sweet sarcasm. "But things are going pretty well, I can't believe you survived the training for this. I'm dying just trying to keep my head down!"

"You seem to be doing fairly well, Manager Ma hasn't called me in a panic for six hours. It's a new record for him," Jay explained.

Yuri could easily see the manager clutching onto his cell phone in tears as he waited for Jay to pick up, it was just so _him_. "Yeah, but um . . . someone figured it out."

"Dara."

Jay's statement was absolute. Yuri could feel his voice strain a bit as he winced so far away. "Yeah, and she is pissed at you. But mostly worried, she's definitely worried. You should give her a call soon, and maybe she won't kill you."

"Do you have practice today?"

"Starts in half an hour," Yuri confirmed after checking the clock on her phone.

"Then I'd better call her now."

"Yeah, so get to it. Hmmm, Love you, bye," Yuri said slowly, listening to Jay's trepidation as he tried to drag out the time before Dara yelled at him. "Oh and get better, _soon_!"

"Early morning call to the hospital?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah that was . . . " Yuri blinked a few times as she stared into the silly fox-faced grin that could only be Donghae's, even behind huge California shades.

He'd sat down across the table from the not-so-incognito figure of Jaebeom just as he'd encouraged whoever it was that was in the hospital to do something and get better. The casual way Jay had said he loved the person on the line intrigued Donghae beyond measure. Jay didn't strike him as one to throw those words around lightly, and yet at the same time he was _sure _it wasn't his girlfriend. Sister maybe? But she was safe and sound in the States . . . though, Jay usually had some sort of news on the girl, about what she was doing at that prestigious university she'd gotten into, and he was always spouting some nonsense or other about how she ought to be here in the music business too . . . His recent silence on the matter was odd, as was his attachment to the person in the Japanese hospital, and his behavior around the band . . .

Yuri sat in a panic as Donghae simply stared at her. As he was thinking through the possibilities, Yuri was backtracking through her conversation, wondering what exactly he had heard. It wasn't too bad . . . at worst he'd heard that Dara was angry . . . but Dara was the type to be easily angered, so hopefully he wouldn't think too much on it.

"You don't have to tell me, if you don't want to . . . but if you're worried about that person . . ." Donghae left the sentence unfinished, taking the approach he'd traditionally had the best luck with. By letting people tell in their own time, he was usually able to help much more than if he tried to pry.

"They're going to be fine . . . and here, in a few days, if all goes to plan," Yuri said, still in full out panic mode.

Eyeing the phone Jay was hurrying to stick back in his pocket, Donghae asked, "Do things often follow the plan where you're concerned?"

Yuri sighed, running her palm across the back of her neck in a gesture of discomfort she'd often seen Jay perform. "Not typically," she said with all the stress and strife of the past few days bleeding into her voice.

The strain didn't escape Donghae's notice. "Uh-huh," he said slowly, looking Jay over carefully. "Well, practice starts in about ten minutes, and you look like you're done with breakfast . . . wanna grab a coffee?"

"Oh, you read my mind!" Yuri was still concerned that Donghae had heard more than she'd have liked, but coffee seemed to be his status quo and that was where Yuri liked to be.

The pair walked up to the counter, ordering two iced mocha lattes and then heading out of the café. Donghae had been planning on getting one for himself anyway, that was the reason he'd entered the café to begin with. He'd only gotten sidetracked when he'd seen Jay in the corner.

Sipping on their icy drinks, Yuri and Donghae walked into the practice room where everyone was already assembled just in time to hear Manager Ma announce, "A few hours ago, Trainer Lee's water broke, apparently her baby girl decided today was a good birthday . . . she and her husband are currently at the hospital . . . and we don't know when she'll be back."

Manager Ma was fidgety and worried, but for once not in tears. It was close though, his eyes were moist, and his poor fingernails. The girl under Yuri's disguise cried out for a manicurist.

Related to Ma's distress, YoungJae stood and moved to the manager's side to address his band. "That means we have some time off," he said to celebratory cheers. Then he calmed the rabble, saying, "But not all day. I'll give you guys the afternoon, if SooHyun agrees with me, but first I want to check on a few things. Chansung, Kihun, and JongHyun, for _Spicy Sweet _I think the choreography after the second repeat of the chorus isn't flowing right. I want to tweak it and tune it up for our next concert. And Donghae, we should see how you and YeongSaeng should fit together for _Beautiful, _now that you won't be all alone on stage for it. And Jay, I think we should have you run through _Only for You_, practice makes perfect, after all, and it'll help build your confidence up. SooHyun, do you want to add anything?"

"MinJi and JiEun's _Special_ feels a bit off to me, let's take a look at that too," she said, simply.

"Ladies first," Kihun said with a grin after YoungJae nodded his consent.

The two girls in question hopped off the rolled-up mats they'd been perched on, stretching out as YoungJae practically pushed Manager Ma out the door, and as Jaebi and SeungMi gathered up the bags strewn across the floor by the various members. Donghae and Yuri joined the group gathered around the mats. Yuri slipped in between Dara and SeungMi, trying to make herself as small as possible.

When the music started, Yuri focused her energy into watching their movements. It was that, or let her attention drift to the members staring at her as they wondered why Jay had been awake early enough to have coffee with Donghae. Manager Ma was plaintively standing outside the practice room's door, staring through the window like the puppy Ga In stared though the meshed steal door of his kennel

The dance was cute and elegant at the same time, capturing the unique vibe of the song itself. It complimented both girls very well, but SooHyun was right, there was something off about it.

"It still seems unbalanced," Donghae commented.

YoungJae nodded. "But what should we do to fix it?"

"We've tried adding in SeungMi," SooHyun mentioned. "It did help, but it still ..."

"I think it needs four, the singer in front for each part, two to either side, and then one behind," YeongSaeng said definitively.

KyuJeon agreed with a nod and a curious, "But who would be the fourth? Dara's not tall enough to offset JiEun's height, and SooHyun will have been constantly on stage for an hour by then!"

"I can handle another song, I won't have to sing after all," SooHyun said, thinking the proposition over. It certain would be a better show with four.

"I don't want you to push yourself too hard," YoungJae said.

"Says the person who's dancing back-up for half the solos," the female leader retorted with her arms crossed.

Kihun spoke up, "I agree with YoungJae. We could rearrange the song list."

"How do you think it should be done?" YoungJae asked.

"If YeongSaeng's solo went after the duet you and SooHyun have, and then mine, and _then_ hers . . . It would at least give her a break." Kihun knew it wasn't the optimal solution, the mix up affected the rest of the show in a way bordering detrimental.

There was a moment of quiet contemplation among the band. Then Yuri voiced a shaky suggestion, "What if instead of SeungMi and SooHyun, two of the guys went up?"

"Explain," YoungJae commanded with keen interest.

Yuri shrugged, trying imitate the relaxed way her bother announced his opinions. "It would get rid of SooHyun's problem, and it would give MinJi and JiEun someone to 'talk' to rather than just an imaginary guy."

"Knock a little fan-service around?" Donghae asked with a grin. "It would certainly be a crowd pleaser. And the lucky guys are . . . ?"

Her mind frantically scanning through the scattered memories of the concert, Yuri suggested, "YeongSaeng's free then, right? Or Chansung, or JongHyun, or Kihun? Height-wise, it'd probably be best with Chansung and JongHyun."

"That may just work," SooHyun said slowly, looking the two candidates over carefully. JiEun was shifting a bit on the balls of her feet, a reaction that Yuri reasoned could just mean she was bored with the discussion and wanted to get back to actually dancing. No one else was paying it attention, after all.

Donghae interjected, "I think JongHyun's too tall for MinJi though, and Chansung's too perfect against JiEun to have them trade."

"So who do think should replace him?" YeongSaeng asked. "You? I'm too short, especially when MinJi wears heels."

Yuri's eyes flicked to the maknae, even in flats she was remarkably tall. The top of her head was about level with YeongSaeng's at the moment, and in heels she'd be noticeably taller.

"YoungJae."

"He's on stage even more than SooHyun!" YeongSaeng laughed.

"Not if I take his part in Dara's solo."

YeongSaeng shook his head, accusing, "You just want to be on stage for _Kiss Kiss_."

Without a hint of remorse for being caught, Donghae replied, "Ulterior motives or not, it would free YoungJae up long enough for him to recover and dance with MinJi."

"You did choreograph _Kiss Kiss_," Chansung spoke up. "If anyone could replace YoungJae there, it'd be you."

"I like it," Jinki announced with a grin.

The young peanut gallery sitting around him, Jaebi, SeungMi, and KyuJeon, shouted their approval as well. From behind them, JongHyun said, "Besides, this way I'll have a nice long break between things. Usually, my songs are only separated by five minute intervals. It'll be nice to actually be able to sit down for once."

"Let's try it out," SooHyun said.

After a few minutes of quick stretches, Chansung and YoungJae joined MinJi and JiEun in front of the mirrors. When JiEun gave a nod, SooHyun flicked on the music. It was very easy to note the vast improvement in the song's stagemanship. There were a few kinks that needed to be worked out, now that there were guys involved. For starters, half the things JiEun and MinJi did with their hips were impossible for the guys to copy. And also, integrating them as almost props in the song's story line took a bit of tweaking in the choreography. Overall it wasn't anything major and from such small changes, the results were spectacular.

Nearly all of Jay's suspicious behavior over the past few days was dismissed by nearly all of the band members, the dancer was upholding the reputation he was brought on board for. Even if the promotions in Japan had gotten him a bit star-struck, or if he did in fact have a girlfriend, he was still and valued and valuable member of QuaszauR. "Good call, Jay," YoungJae praised as the last run through of _Special_ came to a successful end. "Your turn, warm up," the leader proceeded to command.

Yuri swallowed hard. She'd almost forgotten about the fact that she was expected to dance at this dance practice. Taking a deep breath, she ran through _Only for You_ in her head. Dara had helped her extensively with this one, the practice had been what was mainly responsible for the many bruises Yuri had from falling. There were four separate back flips in the stupid song, and Yuri was inexpressibly grateful to Dara for helping her learn them. She wasn't perfect, but hopefully no one would be watching to carefully.

Fortune was a fickle mistress and with all the other times Yuri had managed to scrape by on nothing more than luck and a smile, she was due for some sort of problem. Though she performed the dance better than she had during her entire practice with Dara, Jay's friends were still quite concerned about him. Chansung was still too shy around the newest member to mention anything; Jinki was too confused to consider that Jay might not be kidding; YeongSaeng and Donghae were each absorbed in their own thoughts; and that left JongHyun to ask, "Is your leg hurt, the right one? You seem to be favoring it a bit." It was partly true, but the only real explanation any of the group could come up with for why Jay was 'a bit' off was that he'd been run over by a tour bus.

Well, anyone who didn't know the _real_ reason. Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi were ecstatic with Yuri's performance. She'd made some real progress in only two days. Of course it wasn't anywhere near perfect, but it was close enough to the spectacular norm of Jaebeom that it could pass as his ability while injured.

"Um, yeah," Yuri said, quickly to answer JongHyun with a reasonable response. "It doesn't really hurt, but it doesn't like the force exerted for the back flips."

"Has it hurt since the concert? You only did one on stage and it looked like an awkward landing," SooHyun commented with worry in her voice.

"Yeah, that's what happened," Yuri replied, feeling bad about lying to such a nice girl. SooHyun, and most of the others for that matter, were genuinely concerned about Jay's injury, and Yuri felt awful for not telling them the truth.

She consoled herself by thinking that the real Jay _did_ have an injured leg, so really it was just another part of her filling in for him.

"You should have told us," YoungJae reprimanded. "YeongSaeng, see what you can do. Chansung, Kihun, JongHyun, you're up."

As JongHyun and Kihun stood and began their stretches, YeongSaeng took Yuri over to a corner of the room away from the other bystanders. "Here, sit down," he said offering his bandmate a hand. He wasn't sure how worried about Jay he ought to be. Usually when people in this line of work didn't tell you about an injury it was because they were aware they were over-working themselves and ashamed, or embarrassed, or would rather the others didn't trouble themselves.

But Jay was being so casual about this, not at all defensive.

"Really, it only hurts when I try to do a back flip," Yuri promised. She didn't want to be found out as an imposter, but the worried look on YeongSaeng's face as he began to check the muscles in her leg for injury was heartbreaking.

"Is it the knee then?" At Jay's nod, YeongSaeng adjusted his ministrations, his well-trained fingers gingerly probing the joint for a clue as to what was causing the pain.

Yuri meanwhile was watching the three oldest members of QuaszauR practice. There was something a bit off with the dance. This time Yuri had no suggestions to offer. Between the rest of the band and a lot of trial and error, however, her input was unnecessary and the three managed to get their danced tweaked to near perfection in less than an hour. YeongSaeng hadn't been able to find any specific problems in her knee, to the surprise of few.

"And it's just when you try a back flip?" YoungJae asked.

Yuri shrugged. "It seems to be, I mean I haven't noticed it hurting any other time."

"Then lay off practicing them for a while," SooHyun ordered.

YoungJae agreed, "We'll see how you're feeling in two days, and then we'll see what you can do for the concert. Let's run though it a few more times, without the flips, just in case we have to do that for the show, we want to make sure you're ready."

Yuri nodded; she could do the dances without the back flips in an adequate imitation of Jay. At least according to Dara, she could. Yuri stretched out the leg YeongSaeng had basically massaged into a coma and, feeling the tingles of pins and needles run through its length, waited for the music to start.

"YeongSaeng, Donghae, warm up," SooHyun instructed before she hit play for Jay. "Oh and go grab a few water bottles, won't you?"

"Yes, ma'am," Donghae replied, lifting from his seat against a fold of mats. YeongSaeng joined him at the door and the pair headed out into the hall just as Jay's song began to pound through the speakers.

"He's being very strange," YeongSaeng commented immediately after the door clicked closed.

Donghae laughed. "And that's news this week how?"

"I didn't feel anything in his leg."

"You said as much to YoungJae."

YeongSaeng shook his head, emphasizing, "I didn't feel _anything_; no knots or kinks at all. None of what you'd expect from anyone in this business. It was like he hasn't been practicing for years."

This gave Donghae pause. "That is strange. He practices almost as much as I do, and he's almost as good too," he finished, joking to balance the gravity of the situation.

Suddenly, Manager Ma rushed up to them. He'd left his post at the door for a quick run to the bathroom, but now he could ask about the person responsible for the success of his future. "How's Jay doing?" he asked nervously, a bead of sweat dripping from his nose onto his constantly swirling hands.

Normally, they wouldn't pay his nerves any attention; it was Manager Ma after all, the man didn't have a reputation for being cool under even the pressures of everyday life.

But his interest in Jay, who was behaving like an entirely different person, made them wonder. "Did something happen in Japan?" YeongSaeng asked.

Ma nearly had a heart-attack, but fortunately his body was used to this kind of near-miss adrenaline shot and he was able to answer with his usual level of articulation, "Not really, but he did seem overwhelmed by it all. I don't think he was expecting to have so many fans before he even officially debuted."

"Uh-huh," Donghae said, suspicious, but not sure why. There wasn't anything he could think of to suspect.

Manager Ma pressed his question, "But Jay's doing well, right?"

"Not for him, YeongSaeng thinks he hurt his leg somehow," Donghae said dismissively.

"It should be fine in a few days, a week at most," YeongSaeng hurried to add when Manager Ma paled even beyond his usual sickly color.

"That's good to hear," Manager Ma mumbled as he began to wander off. "No need to worry so much."

Donghae decided to try a bit of prying, though it went against his usual M.O. "Is there a reason we ought to be worried?"

Manager Ma swiveled in place, his beady little eyes wide. "No, of course not! Jay is perfectly fine!"

Leaning over the man using his height and sly smile in a much more sinister manner than he ever did besides his acting for QuaszauR's _Hypnotic_ music video, Donghae asked again, "What happened in Japan?"

The manager squeaked, something between a half scream and a hiccup. "It's nothing! Don't bother looking into it, it'll just cause a hassle. Jay's fine!"

"Fine? His sister's, like, missing!" This voice belonged to Kwon SeungHyun, a solo artist by JYG that preferred to go by his stage name of Z.J. He was walking towards his usual practice room with a laptop tucked under his arm. If anyone would know what celebrity gossip was reaching the public, it was Z.J; he was constantly on sites like All-K-Pop-dot-com, via the computer ever-present at his side.

For that reason, no one questioned the information itself. YeongSaeng prodded into the details of the account, "Missing how?"

"The girl's name is Yuri, right? Well, she booked a flight to Korea a few days ago, and a hotel room. She checked in, and then she didn't come back. Her stuff wasn't in the room when the maids came after the second day," Z.J. elaborated with the expression of someone dishing a juicy secret while at the same time holding genuine concern for the parties involved. It was a look only he could pull off.

"Those netizens certainly do their homework . . . " Donghae mentioned, eyeing the computer like it was a magical object not to be trusted within ten feet of himself.

Z.J. laughed. "Don't worry, they haven't written anything but praise about you. Oh, and they've been tracking the China Tour – "

Without the usual reverence he bore his hyung, Donghae interrupted, "And no one has any idea where she is? Does Jay know about this?"

"I was gonna ask you that," Z.J. responded with a shrug.

As the interrogation had turned to focus on Z.J., Manager Ma had slipped away, as Donghae noticed when he tried to turn back to confront the man on the issue. He and YeongSaeng stared down the hall, searching for his retreating form. They were met with a less welcome sight, Jay trotting down the hall to meet them.

"What exactly takes so long about grabbing some water?" Jay asked when he made eye contact with the two.

From right behind him, Dara said, "YoungJae told us to come find you, make sure you weren't mugged or something. Oh, hey Z.J."

YeongSaeng and Donghae shared a look. It was likely that Jay knew his sister was missing, but just in case he didn't, it was best not to let Z.J. bring the subject up. He was a nice guy, but tact had never been his thing.

"We were just talking with the manager and then we met up with Z.J. and things just sort of dragged on, but we're getting there, we promise!" YeongSaeng announced, grabbing onto Donghae and spinning around to head in the proper direction.

"You guys should come too," Donghae said, grabbing Jay's arm and dragging him off with YeongSaeng's help. He was light enough that it wasn't really necessary for the pair to haul him away, but the fact that he latched onto Dara made him twice as difficult to maneuver.

They had almost reached the break room, where the three refrigerators held over a thousand water bottles and they would be out of Z.J.'s range, when the singer called, "Hey Jay, before you go, do you know where your sister is?"

YeongSaeng and Donghae froze, looking at Jay from the corners of their eyes. The reaction they saw was puzzlement; he clearly didn't know what Z.J. was talking about. This was _exactly_ what they had been hoping to avoid. Straining his neck to get a look at Z.J.'s face, Jay asked, "What do you mean?"

"According to my sources, Yuri was supposed to be in Seoul three days ago. She even checked into her hotel, but yesterday her stuff wasn't there, even though the reservation included today," Z.J. explained. "I'm curious, where is she?"

Yuri paled. She'd been told of this person by Jay. Z.J. was a solo singer with a weird attachment to his signature day-glow orange hobo-hat, and his sources were _always_ the definitive answer. Because Z.J. often knew more than the bands being gossiped about did, simply saying he must have gotten his facts mixed up would only make things even more suspicious.

YeongSaeng's grip on Jay's arm adjusted to keep him standing in case he passed out. Donghae too, moved his hand to better support his friend if things took a downward turn. He was very pale after all.

What neither of them noticed was that, behind them, Dara was just as suddenly ill as Jay. But what could she do? She couldn't give the secret away! And she couldn't think of any way to explain the situation. Dara still believed that Jay _had_ told Yuri_ something_ about his plan; he couldn't have _really_ expected her to fly in blind. Because of that she'd never expected a situation like this one to come up, hiding Yuri's travel arrangements ought to have been a part of the plan!

Meanwhile, Yuri was thinking quickly. If she was replacing Jay, then why couldn't _Jay_ replace _her_? "She's with some friends of ours in Japan," Yuri said quickly, trying to hide how breathless she was.

"Really?" Z.J. asked, his thick eyebrows rising up under his hobo hat in suspicion. "Then why book the hotel here for so long?"

"It came with the flight, a three day, two night, special fare kinda thing," Yuri babbled, praying to every deity she'd ever heard of that what she was saying made sense. "We had lunch the day of the concert and the next day she packed up for Japan."

Z.J. gave her a hard stare, sending shivers of panic running though Yuri's stomach. Dara meanwhile was fairly impressed, the girl could think on her feet. YeongSaeng and Donghae were giving Yuri the same stare Z.J. was, but she didn't notice as her focus was on the one who'd initially asked the question.

After the longest three seconds of any of their lives, Z.J. shrugged. "Works for me, catch ya later!"

He disappeared off towards the practice rooms and the four members of QuaszauR all exhaled heavily and slipped into the break room. After they gathered up the water bottles, they headed back to their own practice room in a fraction of the time it had taken to come the other way. They returned to find Jinki, Jaebi, and KyuJeon practicing the last of the concert's partial-group songs.

They slipped in quietly, so as not to disturb the performers. Yuri and Dara moved to sit by SeungMi as YeongSaeng and Donghae rejoined Kihun, Chansung, and JongHyun with the rest of the group as they stretched out the muscles they were supposed to already have warmed up. YoungJae gave them all disapproving looks.

In whispers the news was spread between the group members. Yuri was in Japan, with some friends she shared with her brother. SooHyun reacted to the news with a satisfied smile. "_Friends_," she repeated pointedly with a glance in Jay's direction. "There was no promo pack, Yuri came to Seoul and heard from Jay about the girlfriend. That's why she rushed off to Japan, she's Jay's bedside substitute!"

"I wonder if Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi know," JiEun commented, adding, "He's been so quiet with the rest of us, but look at how he is with them!"

Donghae hadn't noticed this too much before, having written it off as just one more thing that Jay was doing weirdly as of late. But now that it was mentioned, Jay did seem to be forming a small circle of confidants. "What if it's just Yuri that's in the hospital?" he asked, still certain that it wasn't a girlfriend that Jay was keeping secret.

SooHyun flatly refused to even acknowledge the possibility, MinJi and JiEun did the same and with force of majority against them, Chansung and JongHyun did too. Kihun had already been convinced by Donghae and YeongSaeng that something else was up, but as he hadn't any other explanation he chose to simply stay quiet.

As the main bulk of the band was discussing Yuri's possible romantic relations with the mysterious person in a Japanese hospital, the smaller contingent was discussing the mysterious person in question.

"So Jay did call you this morning? Good, he can follow directions," Yuri said with a nod that showed she had been severely doubting his ability to do so.

SeungMi wasn't sure whether to be excited or worried. "What did he say?"

"Sorry," Dara said with something resembling sarcasm in her voice. "Actually he sang _Sorry Sorry_, and then apologized for real. He really hadn't wanted to make us worry, using Yuri as a replacement was as much for our benefit as his. He _really_ thought that we wouldn't notice and that he'd be back the day after the concert."

"Why isn't he back yet?" SeungMi asked with a pout, she was now more worried about him than she would have been if he'd explained the whole thing from the beginning. Then she jumped, her big brown eyes becoming perfectly round as she looked at Yuri. "Not that I don't like having you around . . . it's just."

"I'm worried about him, too," Yuri said with a small laugh. "Apparently the injury is much more serious than he thought. He still thinks that he should be back before the concert though, so we shouldn't worry too much."

As Yuri finished talking, and as a quick poll on who thought what as to what was going on was made by the other group, the song of the three in practice mode came to an end. They were pleased with how they had done in the two run-throughs they'd made since Donghae and YeongSaeng were first sent for water.

The two errant popstars stepped up to the plate right away, ready to make up for their earlier negligence. Even in practice the song made Yuri pause. _Beautiful_ was easily her favorite song of all time, it just flowed in such a wonderful way and Donghae's amazing voice filled her head entirely whenever he opened his mouth to sing.

And his dancing was certainly something spectacular to watch. The last time Yuri had heard this song, she'd been too panicked to really watch his movements. She'd noticed that he'd had perfect control over his every limb, but she hadn't been able to focus on the specific motions. The dance was a complicated series of difficult moves, but Donghae pulled them all off with ease. He even made it look fun.

YeongSaeng too, had mastered the dance to a level that allowed for it to appear delighting, even as it must've been exhausting. YeongSaeng only danced in a part of Donghae's solo, but it was a perfectly timed and coordinated bit that added to the show of the song very well. Yuri was spellbound as she watched them run through it a few times with YoungJae picking at every little mistake as revenge for taking so long with the water.

Donghae bore it with good humor; in fact he liked working on his moves like this. Knowing that he would give his best to the fans, and that they would like his performance as much as he liked the song he was performing, lifted his spirits. Here and there he tested out adding in bits of flare that would make the fans happy, choosing what worked and what didn't by how it felt to him and by how his bandmates reacted.

Jay's reactions were the most puzzling, though no more puzzling than everything else about Jay had been for the past few days. He was sort of in a state of zombification, staring transfixed at Donghae's back as the performer watched his audience in the mirror. Jay didn't seem to hear Dara as she tried to ask him a question, even when she shoved him, Jay just sort of fell over, rather than reply. Dara eventually gave up getting his attention and turned back to her conversation with Jaebi, but Donghae's eyes stayed on Jay. He didn't comment or really react in a particular manner to any of the little add-ins Donghae threw in, he just kept staring.

It was creepy, or at least it should have been. Donghae found that part the strangest of the little escapade. Jay was hardly blinking, and his attention was utterly cemented to Donghae and YeongSaeng. From anyone else, Donghae would have felt goose bumps rising on his shoulders. From this person, the strangely acting bandmate that was usually the first to bore after Jinki, Donghae found the attention almost exciting; like Jay was a particularly harsh dance instructor that Donghae was finally managing to please.

His satisfaction only continued to increase as the practice session wound to a close.


	4. A Day Off and An Unfortunate Delay

YoungJae was grinning with leaderly satisfaction as the practice wrapped up for the day. He kept his voice stern, despite his obvious pride in his members, as he said, "Tomorrow, regardless of how Trainer is doing, we're going to have to work on the sub-group pieces for the concert. I know you know them backwards by now, but it's important that we do them well for their debut concert. With Jay having debuted in the last concert, now we need to show the fans that having him to make the sub-groups work is a good thing."

SooHyun stood, saying, "Now I don't know about you guys, but _I'm _going shopping!"

MinJi and JiEun jumped up to join her instantly, looking expectantly at SeungMi and Dara. The younger of the two looked very torn, she obviously wanted to go with the girls, but she kept looking back to Jay with a worried expression. Dara refused to even glance at the others, knowing that she would cave if she looked away from her new friend for even a moment. Yuri wanted more than anything at that moment to go with them too; but how weird would it be for _Jay _to suddenly enjoy a shopping day, when usually he ordered his clothes over the internet for his hatred of malls?

"Oh come on guys!" MinJi pleaded, latching on to SeungMi's arm. "We haven't had a girl's day in nearly a month!"

"And Dara," JiEun added. "You promised you'd help me pick out some outfits! You're my style savior, you can't not come!"

SooHyun nodded. "And Jaebi, we can't not bring Jaebi! I want to get him something, anything. He's just _sooo_ cute! Oh, and KyuJeon, you have to come too."

MinJi, strong for her weight and slight stature, was able to drag SeungMi and Jaebi up and away on her own. JiEun took Dara, and SooHyun pulled KyuJeon along, and just like that, Yuri was left again in panic mode, alone with the rest of the band.

YoungJae sighed as he watched them leave. He'd dismissed them all of five minutes ago and already practice was the furthest thing from their minds. "I'll be in the studio if anyone needs me," the leader said, heading out.

JongHyun waited a second, deciding, but then he stepped up, saying, "I'll come with you, I wanted to talk about what we're doing in terms of promotionals for _HeartQuake_, outside of the concerts."

Pouting, Jinki asked, "You guys are working on a day off? That's no fun."

"That's why it's called work," YoungJae said as the pair walked out.

Jinki's pout remained in place as the leaders left, but soon a wide smile pushed it away. He jumped up, stretching like he hadn't stood in a week, and chirped, "So then, what should we do? I know! It's perfect!"

"And just what would 'it' be?" Chansung asked with more than a hint of trepidation in his voice. Jinki wasn't renowned for coming up with good ideas, and he was even less known for giving up on forcing his bandmates to participate in his follies.

"Explore the city! Jay hasn't really had much of a chance to just wander around, and we haven't been out for a long time either," Jinki explained. "It'll be so fun!"

"And you just happen to have six hoodies, hats, and pairs of sunglasses on you?" Donghae asked, though he quite liked the idea.

YeongSaeng supplied, "The wardrobe department does, it's just downstairs."

"And we are allowed to borrow whatever we need from there," Kihun mentioned with a sly grin. "So long as we return it, eventually."

After a pause of no more than half a second, the room erupted in motion as the band scrambled out the door, dragging Yuri along. She was really excited that they were going to explore Seoul, though she would have been happier if her brother had been there to show her around. It had been her plan all along to spend a day exploring the city with a popstar that lived there, so what if these weren't exactly the popstars she'd been thinking of at the time?

With that thought in her head, Yuri stopped dragging her feet and raced with the best of them down three flights of stairs, which were agreed via subliminal messaging to be a more exciting option than the elevator. Once in the right department, they dug into the wardrobes looking for just the right disguises.

YeongSaeng decided on a cape, much to the dismay of the others; they talked him out of the fluffy purple hat, but he'd fallen in love with the cape. Jinki took the hat off his hands, pairing it with and tweed overcoat that looked like it belonged in a Sherlock Holmes movie. Chansung found a sports coat with a Yankees logo on it, and he would have looked almost normal if he'd left giant heart sunglasses in the box they had wormed their way out of. It didn't help that he also wore a Red Sox baseball cap, and could not be convinced of the incongruity. Yuri and Kihun were dressed the most appropriately; a plain hoodie, Yuri's was white and Kihun's was orange, regular sunglasses, and plain old baseball caps, one red and one blue to match the lettering on their shirts. Donghae very carefully selected a striped tan flat cap and California shades to go with a tan overcoat that almost matched Jinki's, but Donghae's was stylish.

Donghae was the most easily recognizable of the bunch, his disguise making him even more attractive while preserving his unique style. Other than Yuri and Kihun, the group stood out more than they would have if they hadn't bothered to disguise themselves. This thought occurred to them all and affected not one as they headed out into the sunny Seoul afternoon.

Yuri had never had more fun in her life. They ran across the whole city, taking public transportation for the sake of it without any destination and getting off where they had gotten on. Using their cell phones they took hundreds of pictures, a few of which were emailed to celebrity gossip sites to the delight of their fans, many of whom went on the hunt to find their idols. Considering how they were dressed, it was remarkably difficult to find them.

None of the idols in question noticed the people hunting for them, as they were too busy rushing around. They moved inefficiently form place to place in a random order than involved a _lot_ of backtracking, not because they were trying to be stealthy, but because the more experienced members kept thinking of things Jay should see before they went home, and _none_ of their minds operated in the standard order of things. They ate lunch on the go, having bought little snacks all day rather than taking an actual meal.

By the end of the day they were all exhausted, but they had seen everything they could think of that Jay _needed_ to see. The stuff that was cool, but not vital to his Korean education could wait until next time. And he had certainly learned a lot about Korean snack food, they noted with satisfaction. Kihun was the most pleased with their dining option. "I didn't have to cook any of it!" he exclaimed when Yuri wondered about the reaction, adding, "I usually have to do all the cooking, because I'm the best at it. I actually don't want to go home just yet because I'm too tired to cook right now, and they'll be wanting dinner."

"I'll cook," Yuri said suddenly, an idea coming to her. It was the only thing that could make the day better.

Suspicious, Kihun asked, "You can cook?"

"Sort of, but this would be really good, trust me! It's just what a summer afternoon calls for," Yuri promised.

"Are you sure?" Jinki said worried.

"Yes, now show me where the nearest supermarket is!" Yuri demanded.

Donghae stared at her for a long moment. Then he gave in, standing up from the wall they had been lounging on during one of the few breaks they had taken throughout the day, saying, "You're not gonna let this go are you?"

"Nope," she replied immediately. "I want to eat an _American_ food for once, and Kihun deserves a break."

"I can't complain about that," Kihun said, joining Donghae and leading them all to the nearest store.

Inside, Yuri discovered that she could not figure out how this store was organized at all . . . She stared at the signs for a full minute trying to figure out where what she wanted would be when Jinki bumped into her with a shopping cart. "Get in!" he said with a grin. "You can tell us what you want and we'll navigate."

"That's ridiculous," Yuri retorted.

Donghae and Chansung gave each other a look and a few seconds later, Yuri found herself being hefted into the cart regardless of her wishes. "Now, where to?" Kihun asked as the other two forced her to settle into an almost-sitting position in the cart.

Other than making her feel like she was five years old, the cart was rather comfy, and Yuri knew it wasn't worth contesting, so she declared, "The first thing we need is bread."

An hour of craziness, running around in pointless circles, and massively enjoyable chaos later, and Yuri discovered that the guys could navigate the store even less than she could. But they eventually managed, after much spinning of the shopping cart, to get all of the materials Yuri required. None of the popstars could figure out what it was that she was intending to make with the ingredients, but at least they had found them. At the register, as the other four teamed up and played a dizzying round of Yuri-tennis with her shopping cart, Kihun paid for their purchase, using the JYG credit card supplied for just such grocery related occasions. Donghae had to help Yuri walk after words, as her ability to tell ground from sky had been severely dented by the tennis match. He didn't mind though, seeing as he'd enjoyed the game intensely and Jay was remarkably light to support as they walked back to the dorm with Kihun and Chansung carrying the bags.

By the time they walked through the door, Yuri was back to normal, the dizziness purged from her system. When she got inside her ears were assaulted with the whining cries of Jay's bandmates. "Kihun! We're starving!"

"I'm not cooking tonight," he announced.

"I am," Yuri said over the shouts of what and why the rest of the band let out. This was met with utter silence.

"You can cook?" JongHyun asked.

"Sorta . . . Jaebi, SeungMi, can you guys help me with some things?"

The two jumped up from their perches on the couch, bored with watching MinJi and KyuJeon playing videogames, and ever willing to help Jay's baby sister. "What do you need?" SeungMi asked.

Yuri handed her a bag of apples and gave Jaebi a few bunches of grapes. "Dice those," she commanded.

Kihun, YeongSaeng, and Donghae settled themselves at the breakfast bar, leaning over the counter as they watched Yuri flit about the kitchen. "So what are you making?" YeongSaeng asked as Yuri found the large mixing bowl she had seen while hunting for breakfast foods.

"Chicken salad sandwiches," Yuri announced with a smile.

"Sandwiches? That's what all of that is for?" Donghae exclaimed.

Yuri nodded, and Kihun mentioned, "That doesn't really count as cooking."

"Why not? It takes skill, I have to know just how much mayonnaise to put in, and there's dill, and the fruit to mix in . . . it's totally cooking," Yuri protested.

"But you have help," Kihun complained.

"So? I'm an overseer, every kitchen needs someone to give the orders," Yuri said, adding, "Haven't you ever just asked someone to help you out? They probably thought they'd get in the way of your epic Zen cooking vibe."

Kihun grumbled incoherently for a bit, but then he let the subject drop.

Twenty minutes later, Yuri had whipped up enough chicken salad to feed a small army, though if it would satisfy the army of idols eyeing the bowl suspiciously was something else entirely. Collecting herself four slices of bread on a paper plate, Yuri heaped two giant scoops of her gooey, favorite summertime food onto two of the pieces and announced, "I'm going outside; this just begging for a nighttime picnic!"

She hadn't pulled off the disguise she had worn all day, so she didn't hesitate to trot right outside to the small park in front of the JYG dorm building with her sandwiches and a bottle of Coke. At her heels followed Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi. Slowly, QuaszauR members continued to trickle out into the deepening twilight until the entire band was present. Chansung had even brought out a portable set of iPod speakers, to set up a bit of mood music.

Happy summery songs filled the air around the park as they ate. Their conversation ranged from the results of the girl's shopping trip to the way the city should have special places for fireflies to live, because they couldn't be the only ones who would like to see them during evening picnics. Yuri was able to actually participate in the conversation, and for the first time since she had been mistaken for her brother, Yuri felt almost comfortable with her surroundings. She and Dara were even becoming good friends.

And then _Beautiful_ came on, and Yuri forgot what she was saying as she started to hum along. YeongSaeng threw a piece of his uneaten bread-crust at her. "Jay, you've been singing that song _all_ day!"

Donghae defended her, "Hey, it's a good song."

"You don't get an opinion on the subject, you wrote it," his friend retorted.

"And sing it, don't forget that," Donghae mentioned. "It has to be a pretty good song for the fans to demand it at _every _concert."

"I like it," Dara said. Jaebi and SeungMi agreed with her, along with JiEun, MinJi, KyuJeon, and Jinki.

Kihun added, "And we all know Jay likes it."

"You should try the dance," Chansung announced. "You'd be good at it."

"Yeah, come on. Show us what you can do, Jay," Donghae seconded.

Yuri protested, in good humor rather than terror, "But I don't know the dance for _Beautiful_." Dara had mentioned in practice as she'd been staring mindlessly that Jay had only seen the full dance once or twice, so Yuri had no solid fear of being discovered for not knowing.

"We'll teach you!" YeongSaeng said suddenly, jumping up and grabbing onto her arm and trying to pull her up.

Yuri was still hesitant, she wasn't sure she could pick things up as quickly as Jay. She was the brains of the family, not the brawn; and she was traditionally quiet clumsy . . . but she had done fairly well with Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi, and _Beautiful_ was easily her favorite song so knowing the dance would be awesome.

"Why not?" Yuri decided, letting herself be hauled into a standing position.

Donghae joined them, saying, "Alright then, but you'd better learn fast, I'm only doing this a few times."

"No back flips!" YoungJae warned, aware that if there was even a second to freestyle that would be Jay's go-to move.

He looked to Kihun, who was in control of the iPod. As the rest of the band cheered, Kihun pressed play and Donghae began to dance with YeongSaeng. At first Yuri watched in awe, the two were such amazing dancers that she couldn't spare the concentration to learn what they were doing. She had to actively think about how to perform each move and how to transition between them.

After only one run through, Donghae commanded, "Now, you try it with us."

Reluctantly Yuri moved to stand between them, YeongSaeng adjusted his part so that rather than complimenting Donghae's the two were the same, so as to not confuse Jay any more than necessary. Yuri's first try was disastrous, especially in the beginning, as she hadn't actually been trying to learn the steps at first during the last performance. Every move she made was late, other than the second and third chorus and the second half of the bridge.

The second round was better; she managed to hit all three choruses on time and the rest of the bridge. After a few more tries, YeongSaeng went back to doing his usual part, leaving Yuri to deal with the random bits where she was left alone in front. Doing the part she'd been doing before was hard enough, but adding in a bit of her own was ridiculously difficult for her. She ended up stealing bits of Jay's dances from his other songs, whatever she could think of that would fit.

Dara was certainly impressed. Yuri was picking the dance up just as fast as she had learned Jay's parts. And though her improvisation wasn't anything spectacular, Yuri was actively making sure not to throw anything in that Jay wouldn't do, and in that regard she was doing very well. SeungMi and Jaebi agreed quietly, careful to make sure their comments weren't overheard by the members that weren't in on the secret.

Donghae and YeongSaeng on the other hand were very confused. They, and Jinki, Chansung, and Kihun in particular of the bandmates, all _knew_ that Jay could do better, especially at the improv. Normally, it was a hassle to get him to stick to the choreography; he was always throwing in his own stuff. But here, he was sticking to the very base of Donghae's original _Beautiful_ choreography. It was all very strange. He was doing well, certainly, having picked up the dance after only a few trials, but Jay was usually much better.

By then end of the evening, Yuri was extremely proud of herself, and she knew every little twist in the dance and just where she should throw in some of Jay's other dance moves. It wasn't perfect by Jay's standards, perhaps, but she was more than pleased by it. Somehow, the music was eventually turned off, the paper plates were trashed, and the band filed back up to the dorm for a good night's rest. Tomorrow, they had practice.

Yuri was up bright and early, loving that she could sleep in 'till six thirty and still be one of the first people up. For breakfast she went back to the same café she'd eaten in yesterday, muffins really did make great breakfast food. She had trouble believing that Koreans genuinely enjoyed the soup stuff that consisted as breakfast in dramas. Sitting at the same table, it was open after all and it provided the best vantage point for watching the passers-by, Yuri pulled out her phone as she contemplated calling Jay.

Then she noticed she had an unread text message. It was from her brother, _Call me when you get this._

Yuri hit send right away, calling his cell from the screen of the text. It rang twice before she got a recording of a chipper woman's voice, _The person you are trying to reach is currently unavailable—_

Without waiting to finish the message, Yuri cut the connection and dialed Jay's hospital room. When he picked up with a drowsy, _Hello?_, Yuri rebuked, " 'Call me when you get this'? Could you be any more cryptic?"

She was trying to keep her tone light, but beneath her sarcasm Yuri had a sinking feeling in her stomach.

"How's Dara taking the news?" Jay asked the instant he realized that it was his sister on the line.

"What no 'good morning, Yuri' first?" she asked with a laugh. "You must really like this girl."

"What are you talking about?" Jay said quickly, "She's my friend, it must have been a shock to learn that we lied to her . . . "

Yuri laughed again. "You know, SeungMi and Jaebi know too, but you're only worried about _Dara_. What if I said SeungMi flipped out and shaved off all of her hair like Brittney Spears?"

"She didn't," Jay said definitively. Though after a moment of silence, he added hesitantly, "Did she?"

"Of course not, you idiot," Yuri responded.

Grumbling about how Yuri was too mean to be a baby sister, Jay went on to reiterate, "So how _is_ Dara taking this? Is she still mad?"

"Actually, it seems like she's forgiven you for the most part. She's been helping me practice," Yuri explained. Hearing Jay sigh in relief, she added, "Is that the only reason you wanted me to call you?" She still didn't feel completely at ease, especially considering that Jay's cell phone was turned off again.

"There is something else," Jay admitted reluctantly. "This leg thing is worse than we thought, I'm gonna be stuck here for at least another week according to the doctors."

Yuri took a deep breath. She wasn't half as panicked as she had thought she'd be, probably because she'd been almost expecting the news when Jay had insisted on her call. Instead of worry about her situation, she was only concerned about her brother's health. "Do they know what's wrong?"

"Sort of . . . they said it was most likely something with long Latin name." Jay explained as best he could.

"That information is just _sooo_ useful," Yuri replied. "Because I can Google 'something with a long Latin name' and leg pain will come up right away . . ."

"Hey, I don't speak Latin! You can't blame me for not remembering the crazy words the doctors here throw around," Jay protested. "I barely even speak Japanese!"

"Just get better soon! We're worried about you."

"I'll do my best, trust me, I don't want to stay here any longer than I have too," Jay promised.

"Now I had better go talk to Dara about how we're gonna pull this off for another week," Yuri said, her thoughts beginning to turn to the upcoming concert in which she was now going to have to participate. "Love ya, bye."

With that she scarped down the rest of her muffin and bolted back to the dorm. She didn't notice in her haste that to get out of the café she'd had to brush past Donghae, who stared after Jay's rapidly retreating figure in confusion. As he shrugged it off and went to order a caramel frappechino, Yuri slipped back into QuaszauR's dorms and into Dara's bedroom.

The popstar was still sleeping, but she was easily woken and was wide-awake the moment Yuri told her the news. She dressed quickly as Yuri went to repeat the process with SeungMi and Jaebi. In twenty minutes the four of them were seated in a small circle on the practice room's floor.

"A week?" SeungMi asked more worried than Yuri had ever seen her.

"This isn't going to be easy," Jaebi agreed.

Yuri was almost afraid to ask. "What's in store for QuaszauR this week?"

"First up is the concert," Dara said. "You should be okay for that, especially as we have a few more days of practice. But then we have a few photo shoots, recording sessions, _and_ we start filming for the _HeartQuake_ music video."

Yuri's mouth formed into a perfect little 'o' without sound as she couldn't even begin to relate her shock.

Dara continued, "You sing well, and you look enough like him so that few people will notice the difference, but I'm really worried about Jay not being included at _all_ in his debut album! It just seems wrong."

"But what can we do about it?" Jaebi mentioned sadly.

SeungMi replied, "The best we can do is make sure Yuri's ready, and take things as they come."

Dara agreed, but quieted as a disturbance outside the practice room's door drew their attention. It was the rest of the band, led by Coordinator Yuna. When the woman spotted the four members collected on the floor she turned and shouted back, "Donghae-ssi, you were right, they're already here."

"Why do you always doubt me?" Donghae called back as they all made their way into the spacious room.

"YoungJae-ssi, is it alright if I borrow Jaebeom for a few minutes? It'll be quick, I promise," Yuna said.

YoungJae nodded, "Get him to warm up, will you?"

"Yessir," she said with a mock salute. "Come on, Jay."

More curious than worried, Yuri followed the coordinator to the break room. It was empty save for Manager Ma who was talking on his cell phone with a quiet nervousness that filled the room. It did not bode well.

"Oh you poor, poor darling," Yuna said once she had closed the door behind her. "I can't believe my fiancé would be so idiotic as to drag you into this. Don't worry about your stuff, it's safe and sound in my office."

Yuri's eyes widened and she fought to come up with an appropriate response. Meanwhile, Ma hung up his call with a loud beep and a sigh. "That was Jay, he says he has an MRI this afternoon, but for now all we can do is wait."

Yuna spun on him, admonishing him like a puppy that had peed on the new carpet. "How could you drag such a sweet girl into this mess? Do you realize how much worse you've made things? You not only put your job at stake, and Jay's, but now Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi's too! I'm assuming that was why they were with you this morning?" the coordinator added with a look at Yuri.

"They found out?" Ma was in disbelief.

"Of course they found out! She looks nothing like him! I would hope that Dara knows the man she fell in love with from his sister!"

"But, honey, it was supposed to be just for the concert, no one noticed at the concert," Ma pleaded.

"Honey?" Yuri asked. "_This_ is the Yuna you're getting married to?"

Manager Ma nodded, his eyes going unfocused while he thought about it dreamily. Yuna nodded, her lips pursed with a mix of pleasure and annoyance. She held out her left hand to display a sparkling diamond ring that she was both very proud of and very angry about. "And this is what he needed a bit of extra money for . . . he couldn't have just waited another month, and then none of this would have happened."

"But it has happened, and all we can do is deal with it," Yuri said, glad that someone else thought the two boys had been completely idiotic for putting her through this. "And apparently we have recording sessions for the new album this week? How can we deal with this? Jay's not even going to be on his debut album at this rate!"

Yuna sighed. "As long as no one notices that he's not in it, there won't be any problems."

"But it's the official debut album!"

Manager Ma spoke up with his voice flipping about nervously as he fought the urge to swallow repeatedly. "Don't worry, it's not the _official_ official recordings. It's just for the back-up copies, used in the headsets at concerts and things," he promised.

Yuri missed the aggravated look Yuna sent her fiancé due to her own scrutiny of his face. To Yuna's trained eye, it was easy to see the Ma was lying, but Yuri had no such experience and was forced to accept what he said as truth. Yuna disliked lying, especially as Yuri seemed like a nice girl, but if this would help relieve some of the stress she must be feeling, a little white lie was a worthy price.

"Really?"

"Of course! The album is set to come out in three weeks, do you really think we would wait so long to actually record it?"

Still a bit suspicious, Yuri said, "I suppose not . . . then Jay's not _really_ going to be missed, right?"

"You'll do fine being him, it's worked this long, hasn't it?"

Yuri took a deep breath and said, "I guess."

"Good girl!" Ma exclaimed. Then he moved to give her shoulders a brusque massage like he was an athletic coach or something saying, "Now all you have to do is get back to practice and not screw up!"

With those comforting words of advice, Manager Ma pushed Yuri back down the hall and into the practice room. All Yuri had missed was the little warm up period and YoungJae explaining that because they were going to work on their sub-group songs, they were breaking into three separate practice rooms so that each group could use their time efficiently. After lunch they would meet backup for the group rehearsals, and any solo practice they needed.

Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi were a bit worried about leaving Yuri to fend for herself with the guys of QuaszauR Action, but they didn't need to be. Yuri was more focused on the practice than any of the guys could remember seeing in Jay, and at the same time she remained lighthearted enough to joke around with them. There was still something definitively not-Jay about him, Donghae and YeongSaeng discussed quietly as he and Jinki messed around with JongHyun, but neither could quiet figure out what it was.

Lunch was the usual mess of joking, mini food fights, and texting the people right next to you. Jay had apparently left his phone at home, because Donghae, YeongSaeng, and Jinki kept getting messages that his phone was turned off and Jay never moved to get it out of his bag, though he understood the games his friends were playing and normally would have joined in.

It was back to business the moment their lunch break ended and Yuri worked hard right up until YoungJae dismissed them for dinner. Outside JYG headquarters, a few of the members broke away from the pack, saying they wanted dinner out for once and going off on their own. Yuri was glad they did so because it gave Yuri an excuse to wander off alone as well. Dara gave her a curious look but she was being dragged off by MinJi and JiEun, and she couldn't volunteer to come along, though she guessed the reason for Yuri's departure immediately. And Jaebi and SeungMi were no help, because they had been part of one of the small groups that had already left.

So Yuri was left alone to circle around and head back to the practice rooms. She needed to work of Jay's solo, she could _not_ do his back flips yet and they were a central part to who he was as a dancer. With her iPod set to repeat a playlist of his songs, Yuri set to work mastering the things Dara had taught her.

Meanwhile the others were discussing Jay's strange behavior over Kihun's delicious cooking. Why anyone would rather go out to eat than stay in for food like this was a mystery, as it was only half of the band was around to ponder the actions of the newest addition to their family. They didn't get very far, and it boiled down to Donghae and SooHyun bickering as to the existence of a girlfriend as YeongSaeng and Dara tried to mediate.

Dara though, spied an opportunity and took it. With SooHyun occupied, she could take the first shower of the night and actually have hot water all the way through! She left MinJi in charge of making sure the leader and the dancer didn't kill each other and skittered off to grab her pajamas before giving herself the treat of a long hot soak.

MinJi managed to fail in her mediating to such an extent that the pair of SooHyun and Donghae began fighting with her rather than with each other. YeongSaeng counted it as a success and managed to stop the arguing altogether when he hauled MinJi off to play video games. SooHyun pouted that Donghae had made her lose out to Dara in the shower, and before they could get started again, JongHyun asked if Donghae was planning on a jog, because he'd like to come too.

This successfully averted disaster. As they slipped on their customary hoodies and hats, YoungJae warned, "Take your cell phones, and call if you're going to be out more than an hour."

"I left mine in the break room," Donghae announced, as they headed out.

"We'll swing by there first then," JongHyun suggested.

Countering with the knowledge that JongHyun was eager to get going, Donghae said, "I'll grab it, but why don't you meet me back at the fountain after a few laps of the building?"

"Sounds good to me."

Donghae found his cell right where he thought it would be, it had fallen out of his pocket sometime while they were cleaning up from lunch. As he was making his way back down though, the sound of music coming from the practice rooms caught his attention. Who would be practicing this late? The only other JYG band that had a concert coming up was touring in America, and he didn't think anyone from QuaszauR would feel the need to work so long overtime on the songs for this concert, they were nothing new to them.

Then he recognized the music. Jay.

Sure enough, when Donghae reached the one way window that looked into the only practice room in use, Jay was working through the routine to _Only for You_. Donghae smiled to himself; Jay was a hard worker, no one could deny him that. Then Jay threw a back flip and crashed down onto the mats he'd laid out, and Donghae's heart nearly stopped. YoungJae had been very clear, no back flips!

Donghae's hand was on the doorknob and he was ready to burst in when Jay hauled himself to his feet like nothing was wrong and he remembered what YeongSaeng had said. Jay's leg wasn't injured; there wasn't any reason for him to be unable to pull off as many back flips as usual. Donghae watched though the window for another few minutes as Jay did the routine again, this time getting the few aerial moves he tried mostly right as only one landing was precarious.

The problem was an easy one to spot, at least for Donghae. Jay was tucking in to early, limiting the power he could impart to his upward thrust. It was throwing the whole thing off. But Jay could usually pull a perfect flip in his sleep; they just came naturally to him. It was all very confusing.

Donghae was about to go in and help his bandmate, the protective instinct he'd been teased about at their last concert kicking into overdrive, when the phone in his hand vibrated. Donghae looked from the name splayed out on the screen back to Jay. He was quickly growing attached to the newbie and would have liked to help him out, but on the phone's third ring cycle Donghae picked up. "Ah, MinYeon."

Meanwhile, Yuri had no idea any of this was going on. When she'd stopped practicing for a moment she had gone to the break room and had grabbed a packet of ramen noodles, which she discovered were surprisingly tasty when eaten dry like a square granola bar. From then on she'd only paused for quick water breaks. She was figuring this back flip thing out, slowly but surely. She'd ironed out most of the kinks and was now working towards figuring out what was wrong with the way she tucked her knees in. It was not an exciting progress to watch, more like watching a flower slowly bud and bloom than a popstar pick up a new dance, but there was definitely progress involved.

She only went back to the dorms once she felt so tired she wasn't sure if walking back was worth it, or if just sleeping on the practice mats would be better. By then Donghae had not only finished his conversation, but had met up with JongHyun, been gone and back for their jog, taken a shower, and made tea. The tea was mostly a delay tactic, he was getting very worried about Jay, though Dara said he'd called her saying he'd be back late. This wasn't just late, by now it qualified as _very_ late.

After a little teasing from YeongSaeng and the other night-owls, Donghae was convinced to go to bed. He couldn't get to sleep though until he heard the door creak open and a few minutes later heard the rumble of the shower being run. Jay was back, and presumably fine.

The next day's practice was almost identical to the first practice Yuri had attended, except ten times more serious and twice as long. YoungJae and SooHyun went over the entire concert a few times, tweaking for final adjustments as to how they would transition between songs and singers. This time the venue was different and set up so that there was only one raising platform on the stage, one that couldn't support all fifteen of them.

This time after practice was over; Donghae latched onto Jay and refused to let him wander off on his own. As much as Jay wanted to get in extra practice, it was better for him to get his rest. YoungJae had already declared that he was only going to do one back flip in the next day's concert, and that only if he felt up to it as a finale for his solo. That made killing himself with extra practice was entirely unnecessary.

Jay was sent off to bed fairly early, as he normally was one of the hardest to wake in the morning, regardless of how he'd been lately. Most of the others followed quickly after, but Donghae stayed up waiting for the inevitable moment when Jay would try to sneak out. He'd done it before, it was one of the reasons he slept so late.

Yuri wasn't initially planning on sneaking out, but the thought of having to perform at the concert in less than twelve hours made her too nervous to sleep. How Jay had managed to deal with the pressure was something Yuri hadn't learned from Dara. But when she was stressed with school stuff, Yuri had taken to running out her anxiety which is what she was planning on doing when Donghae caught her at the door.

"Where exactly are you going?" he asked casually, sipping his tea.

"Um, I had a sudden craving for a muffin?"

Yuri turned away stiffly as she spoke, the perfect caricature of a thief caught red-handed in cartoons.

"Nice try, take a seat," Donghae ordered.

On guard, Yuri stiffly took a seat beside Donghae at the breakfast bar. Donghae didn't say anything for a long few seconds, but when Yuri's leg began to twitch due to the anticipation, he finally said, "Nervous?"

"A little," Yuri admitted.

Donghae handed her his mug, saying, "Drink it; it's chamomile, good for the nerves."

Yuri complied, frowning as the bitter taste washed across her tongue. Donghae had to grin at the reaction. Though Jay was a goof, his 'cute-quota' was very low. However, his face at that moment was adorable. Jaebi, KyuJeon, and Jinki were usually the ones that handled the group's aegyo for the fans, but as Jay stuck his tongue out to try and air-dry the taste away, the three had some competition.

"You weren't this bad last time," Donghae commented. "What's different this time?"

"Last time I had only been in Korea for a short time and the whole thing kinda seemed surreal to me. Now, it just feels so much more . . . real," Yuri said, confessing as much as she could without revealing her secret.

She stared down into the pale liquid in the mug she was holding. The thought of having to go up onstage again, in front of all those people, made her want to run away as fast as she could. As the panic began to well up in her she took another sip of the tea. Bitter as it was, it helped to distract her from her fears; though to swallow the gulp she had to scrunch her face up in a grimace that made Donghae laugh again.

"Think of it like this," Donghae suggested. "Rather than it suddenly being real as opposed to not real, think of all the prep work you've been able to make for this one. Last time you knew the dances, but everything was so rushed you never got to rehearse them with the rest of the group during the last days before the show itself. This time we've had three days of nothing but concert prep, and tomorrow we're going to spend all day running through it again. By tomorrow night you'll be so sick of all the practice getting on stage will be a relief!"

Yuri nodded mulling over this new perspective. True she hadn't been prepared in any way for the last concert, but now, after having worked with QuaszauR on the routines, she was almost confident in her ability to perform the dances. But with so many people watching her every move . . . Yuri took another swig of tea, this time managing to get it down with little more than a wince.

Her head was beginning to feel fuzzy as sleepiness set in, but her nerves were still enough to counter the late hour and the tea, though only just. "This stuff really works," she commented.

"I have to have at least two cups the night before every concert," Donghae replied with a nod.

This piqued Yuri's interest. "You get nervous?"

"Of course!" Donghae whispered loudly, "I always think about how much the fans are expecting from me, they _love_ me, scream for me, wait in line for _hours_ to see me. They do so much that I _have_ to give them a good show. But what if I trip, or my voice cracks, or I forget the words? I keep thinking about how disappointed they'll be, how I'll have let them down."

"How do you live with that kind of pressure?"

"I practice, so that I'm as good as I can be. I drink tea, to relax as best I can. And I joke around, to keep the fact that everything I do is part of a serious business from crushing my spirit," Donghae said with a shrug. "We all develop our own little coping mechanisms. Right now, you don't have a specific fan-base but you're going to get one soon, so learning to deal with the pressure is important."

Yuri was awed. Donghae was such a chipper person, she'd had no idea he was dealing with all of this. Everyone in QuaszauR was living with such weight on their shoulders, it was amazing. And Jay, Yuri's big brother, was going to have to face exactly the same kind of pressures eventually. Yuri got to go home after this, go back to being just another girl, but Jay was going to _live_ this life.

She took another sip of tea. The thought of going up in front of a couple thousand people who didn't even know who she was felt much less scary in comparison to the mass of expectant fans Donghae had to face.

"Sleepy yet? You should be getting to bed soon, Yuna's gonna have us all in the vans by ten," Donghae said, taking the half empty mug off her hands.

"What about you?"

"I'm gonna finish this first, then I'll be right to bed. Promise!" he added at Yuri's suspicious glance. He wasn't used to being told to go to bed; even YoungJae left him mainly to his own devices.

It was a strange feeling to have Jay, of all people, trying to look after him. Donghae watched Jay walk down the hall, using the wall for support as he realized how tired he was. Within three minutes of Jay's disappearance into his room, Donghae finished his tea and headed to bed as well.


	5. Even Small Feelings Mean Big Changes

The next day was a flurry of activity, Yuri didn't have the time to be nervous. YoungJae had gotten them started the moment they had arrived at the venue in sweats and hoodies. This time they were doing this rehearsal right, he'd said repeatedly with pointed glances at Jay, who had been responsible for the disruption last time. By the time the fans began arriving they had run through the entire concert three times.

Then it was off to wardrobe, hair, and make-up. For this concert, unlike the last one Yuri had participated in, there were to be wardrobe changes throughout the show. Each person changed their clothes a total of four times through the night and they had all been assigned one of fifteen neat little changing cubicles that had all of their outfits labeled for when they were supposed to be changed into.

Before Yuri had time to even think about how many people were waiting to see them, she was standing on one side of the stage with QuaszauR Action, waiting for the cue to go on. Since they couldn't all rise up on a platform, they had broken into subgroups; Sweet would use the platform entrance, while Action and Mellow just walked on stage from the wings.

Donghae slung an arm around her shoulders, adjusting the mic on her cheek. "Again with the hair! Can someone get this guy a hat, please?" he called in exasperation.

Somehow he got his hands on a fedora and set it at an angle on Jay's head that perfectly played off his features. Then he leaned down so that his eyes were level with Jay's, saying, "One thing I forgot to mention last night, about how to deal with nerves: remember that these people are here to see you. Live it up!" At Jay's puzzled expression, DongHae added, "_Have fun_!"

Just after he finished the signal was given for the band to rush onstage, which it did in a riot of smiles, waves, and cheers. Within thirty seconds, Yuri could tell that she was doing exponentially better than she had the last time she'd been onstage. The song order was the same, and the band intended to remain onstage for Jay's solo, just as they had last time, so when _Hypnotic _came to an end, the leaders thanked the fans for coming while the rest of the band moved to the back of the stage.

When Donghae's solo began, Yuri completely forgot to be nervous. The song got better and better every time she heard it. And Donghae exuded this charismatic energy when he sang that was bolstered by the energy of the crowd; Yuri couldn't help but fall in love with it.

YeongSaeng was standing beside Jay as he waited for his part in the dance to come up. There were only a few more lines to go, but as he waited he was struck with inspiration. Jay was staring out at Donghae like he was a twelve year old fan girl and _Beautiful _was the best song in the whole world. Over the dazed popstar's head, YeongSaeng made eye contact with YoungJae. With YeongSaeng's cheeky smile flashing and his arm around Jay, there was no mistaking what he was asking. YoungJae gave a nod accompanied by a small smile.

"_Yes, you~ you are, my beautiful! My~ Beau~ti-ful," _Donghae sang, stepping back towards the group as YeongSaeng moved to join him, dragging Jay along for the ride. The singer understood what was going on immediately and adjusted to the routine they had used in the park. It took Yuri another few seconds to comprehend what was going on, but the moment she did, she fell seamlessly into the dance. It was her favorite after all.

She did almost as well with Jay's solo, which was easily a hundred times better than she had done last time. In fact the only real complaint she had was when she tried the back flip, predictably. But rather than it being something about how she simply couldn't do the maneuver, it had been a stupid mistake. She'd forgotten to hold her hat and as she'd flipped, it had fallen off. Luckily she hadn't tripped over it, and was easily able to pick it up when she bowed as she finished the song.

The rest of the concert went just as smoothly, and Yuri found herself able to take Donghae's advice and have fun as she performed. Her head was buzzing from the fear that lingered, but she managed to genuinely enjoy herself and her time on stage. Off stage was an adventure too. Now that she wasn't running back to the make-up room after every song she was able to joke around with Jinki, an activity that was immeasurably stress-relieving. Yuri's favorite parts though were the songs that she was onstage with Donghae for.

She was beginning to admit to herself that she had something of a crush on him, but it was more than that. He was just wonderful to work with; he knew how to best play off every move any of the other members made. He found ways to joke around while being serious that lightened the mood of the performance even while the break-up songs were going. That was what Yuri mostly enjoyed about spending the time with him; his gorgeous face, perfect body, and angelic voice were all just bonuses.

By the end of the concert, Yuri could honestly say that she'd had an amazing time. She waltzed off stage between YeongSaeng and Donghae, with an arm around each of their waists, and one of theirs slung over her shoulders. KyuJeon finished off the line on YeongSaeng's side and Dara was the last person on DongHae's end. It was a line just short enough to be able to get back stage, and just long enough to make maneuvering once they got there film-worthy material; material that JongHyun did not fail to catch on tape.

But as they tried to get around a narrow corner the mood changed with the explosive speed of a lightning strike. "Oh, MinYeon, when did you get here?"

Donghae had been taken aback; the sudden appearance of the girl in a belly-bearing feathery top and tight black jeans had caught him completely by surprise. Beside him, Dara seethed with barely suppressed hatred for the JYG solo singer. On his other side, Jay was looking curiously at the newcomer. YeongSaeng and KyuJeon were looking anxiously between Kwon MinYeon and the sole object of her attention.

"My plane landed six hours ago," she said simply. With a pout of her bright red lips, MinYeon added, "I tried to call you but you had already turned your phone off for the concert. You were great, Donggie-oppa!"

MinYeon then launched herself at the Donghae, who was forced to let go of both Jay and Dara in order to catch her. The two girls sidestepped awkwardly, unsure of how to react. Dara was proud of herself for not strangling MinYeon, she was _not _a fan of the conceited, talentless, sex-symbol, even if she happened to be Donghae's girlfriend. Yuri was forced to figure the last bit out when MinYeon locked her lips against Donghae's and he only pushed her off of him for propriety's sake.

Shifting so that her back was to Dara, MinYeon said to Yuri, "You're cute, you know? With Donggie-oppa's help you actually did pretty well tonight."

"Thanks," Yuri said, feeling a burgeoning distaste for the girl that was more than petty jealousy. She understood Dara's sickened expression completely. MinYeon was bad news in every way.

"Come on, Donggie-oppa," she said with a girlish giggle that didn't suit her face at all. "Don't you want to hear about what happened while I was in China?" Without waiting for an answer, MinYeon hauled Donghae off. He looked back briefly at the bandmates he was leaving, but he allowed himself to be towed away with little protest.

Yuri and Dara meanwhile were bonding as they fumed about MinYeon's behavior. It was despicable, inappropriate, trashy, conceited, arrogant, and all manner of other negative adjectives. As they rode home in the vans, sans Donghae, Dara explained that he and MinYeon had been sorta dating for just over four years. Really it seemed more like a fan-girl kidnapping than a relationship, but as Donghae had never actually been interested in anyone he'd let things spiral away until MinYeon had announced to the press that they were a couple and he didn't deny it.

When they got back to the dorms, Yuri made herself a cup of chamomile tea and waited for her turn in one of the three showers. As the newest member her place in line was before Jaebi and MinJi, but after just about everyone else. After her shower though, she still didn't fell like going to bed.

She made herself another cup of tea, this time adding some honey to it in hopes of covering up some of the bitterness. She wasn't nervous per-say, but her stomach wouldn't settle. When she thought of MinYeon, she half felt like crying and was half furious, while somehow managing to also be concerned with how Donghae felt about the relationship. Though Dara had been fairly clear that he had few genuine feelings for the girl, if any, Yuri was sure that if he really felt nothing he wouldn't have accepted MinYeon's couple announcement.

After some period of time that felt like weeks but was probably just less than two hours, Yuri fell asleep curled up on the couch, the mug of tea resting at her feet and still cupped in one hand. This is how Donghae found the singer when he returned from the longest dinner he'd ever sat through. Jay's hair was still wet he noticed immediately as he went to investigate. He'd catch a cold if Donghae just left him like this.

The first thing Donghae did was gingerly lift the mug away from the sleeping figure. Sniffing at its contents as he brought it into the kitchen, he recognized the smell. "But the concert's over, what's left to be nervous about?" he mused as he went in search of a blanket.

Though carrying Jay to bed would have been the best option, Donghae was too tired to make the attempt safe; and in order to get Jay into a position that would make him portable, he would have been shifted so much that he would surely have to wake up. That made covering him up the best Donghae could do, if only he could find a blanket!

Apparently the dorm was utterly void of decorative throws, a fact which had never before bothered him. Now though, he was quite annoyed to discover that and resorted to pulling the covers off of Jay's bed to get something warm to wrap him in. Then he made sure that Jay's head had a pillow to rest on rather than the knees which had his neck twisting at an awkward angle. Fortunately, SooHyun had insisted on having small pillows on the couch, so finding one was no problem. Then he made himself a cup of tea, well really he just stuck the half finished cup Jay had left in the microwave for half a minute, and then he went to bed hoping that Coordinator Yuna wouldn't wake them up too early for the photo shoot scheduled for the next day.

His wish came true. There wasn't a knock on his door until ten that morning, and though Donghae was still unusually tired; for the morning after a concert, no one blamed him. He was pleased to see that Jay was up and just as chipper as ever, looking as if he had spent the night in bed rather than scrunched on the couch.

Yuri had woken at nearly her usual time to discover that she'd been wrapped snugly in a blanket and had a pillow under her head. She wasn't sure who had done that for her, though she liked to think it was Donghae. It would have been a move straight out of a drama, and Yuri was as much in love with the sappy sweetness of kdramas as any fangirl. It was much more likely that the one of the caring leaders, or Dara, or Jaebi had done it. SeungMi had been dead on her feet when they arrived at home, so Yuri was pretty sure it hadn't been her.

She was back to her energetic, chipper self now though and was bouncing around the dorms when Yuri came back from breakfast with two iced mochas in hand. One she sipped on herself, though a pick-me-up wasn't really necessary, as she had actually gotten a fairly good night's sleep. The caffeine trip was mostly for Donghae's benefit, as he hadn't gotten in until ridiculously late and would no doubt be in dire need. He took her offering the moment he entered the common room, a grateful smile on his face.

Yuna, with the limited aid her fiancé provided, shepherded the fifteen into their vans and carted them across the city. As they drove, she in one van and Manager Ma in the other, explained the concepts for the day's photography session. _HeartQuake_ itself was trending with the bulk of new albums, and it's dark, sexy, mysterious vibe would be carried over into the jacket photos. The real focus would be on the subgroups.

Mellow would be taking a light, summery series of photos that only required big smiles to suit their song perfectly. Sweet's concept was whimsical; the girls would need to look surprised as a CG fairy or other magical creature appeared before them. The concept Action was going to work with was Yuri's favorite, being a CIA spin-off sort of thing that would allow for them to be dramatic and mature while at the same time goofing off endlessly.

Yuri wasn't quite sure what she had been expecting as they were driving to one of Korea's leading photography studios, but a large warehouse with white linoleum floors and various piles of props and green screens that resembled a half-emptied Wal-Mart hadn't been on the list of possibilities. Off to one side were cubicles for changing that mirrored the ones from the concert and beside them a brightly lit make-up counter.

The full group photos were up first. After quick outfit selections, and two hours of labor from the stylists, fifteen gorgeous idols were released into the photographer's care. He led them over to a brick wall that didn't connect to anything with three rows of scaffolding in front of it. After restating the concept was mysterious, dramatic, aloof, dark, and sexy, the cameraman unleashed the popstars to have-at-it.

The others were perfectly used to arranging themselves in visually appealing manners, but this was Yuri's first time in front of a camera. Her only other experiences with cameras were the mug-shots school had taken of her, as she'd never been subject to any family portraits. There had been no posing involved for them.

Hoping that she could learn quickly, Yuri eyed her bandmates. Dara, regardless of the fact that she was in a slinky black mini-dress climbed up to the second tier of the scaffolding and leaned back against the support pole that was responsible for holding up the third level. Donghae went straight to the top, and seated himself near the center with one leg draped over the tier's edge and the other pulled up beside him. YeongSaeng joined him up high, standing with a hand on Donghae's shoulder. KyuJeon was beside YeongSaeng, crouched with his elbow resting on Dara's shoulder.

They looked so cool; Yuri was sure she would never be able to match them. She was dressed in the black leather and flowing silk that gave the others a mysterious vibe but she felt like they'd painted her into the scene as an afterthought. Donghae called her over, commanding her to stand on the second tier on the same side of the middle support, so that she was facing Dara. "Just copy Dara, and you'll be fine," he said, but then he added, "Well, not exactly copy, avoid the girly arm thing, but other than that, what she's doing is good for you."

Yuri nodded and tried to imitate Dara's pose, though she stuck her thumbs in her pockets as she'd seen Jay do countless times. Against the other side of the support pole leaned SeungMi so that she and Yuri were back to back. Between them on the tier below stood Jaebi, who was facing the camera head-on. On the ground to his right was MinJi, leaning back with her elbows on the first tier and her legs crossed at the ankles. Kihun was the last person to position himself on the side of the scaffolding that Yuri could see, leaning himself dramatically as he stood on the first tier with his feet beneath Dara's and his head beneath YeongSaeng.

Feeling very out of place among the gorgeous idols, Yuri tried to imitate the expression on Dara's face. She jumped as the first flash went off, but quickly settled back into trying to look as mysterious as the people around her. Even Jaebi was managing to pull of the dark and sexy look, while Yuri felt like she stuck out horribly.

After the camera man declared that he had gotten what he needed as a group and now needed individual shots, Kihun told her, "You're doing pretty well considering that this is your first full scale photo shoot."

Donghae slipped down from the top tier, an arm around her neck. "See? What'd I tell you?" he said, dragging Yuri off the set. "Loosen up, these things can be fun you know."

The individual shots took ages, though only ten minutes were needed for each person, ten times fifteen with a minute or two serving as transitional periods between them all added up to a long time. The girls went first, as their transformation into Sweet's concept would be the most labor intensive and none of the stylists felt like putting it off until they were tired.

While they were waiting, the boys either played soccer, basketball, or cards using props they had found in one of the piles littering the warehouse floor. Yuri was more than willing to just watch until YeongSaeng and Jinki dragged her into a game of soccer with Kihun and Donghae that didn't seem to have either teams or an objective. KyuJeon and Jaebi even found vuvuzelas to make the chaos complete, though they kept it quiet so as not to disturb the photographer and his subjects.

The rest of the members were slowly called up for their individual shots as the girls headed off for their sub-group transformations. When it was Yuri's turn, she felt like a fish in a frying pan. She tried to copy what she had seen Donghae and YeongSaeng do, as those were the only two she'd really watched. A few blinding flashes later and it was all over; she was back to playing soccer in no more than fifteen minutes.

The girls came back from the dressing rooms with fresh make-up and new hairstyles as the photographer was finishing up with Kihun. It was obvious why the stylists had wanted to get their transformations out of the way quickly. Where they had earlier been decked in heavy black eye shadow, they now had whimsical colors with silver accents swirling around their faces to enhance their features. The work was so delicate and precise, that the focus required to apply it must have been monumentous.

As the cameraman let Kihun go, he led the girls over to a long freestanding wall that was draped in folds of fabric as milky a cream color as the wall itself. In front of the wall were five mini-sets, each contained a carousel horse, balloons, and a large lollipop. Each mini-set was a different color, to suit the colors of the girls' make-up. They were dressed in a variation of a flirty and flowy white mini-dresses that had a sash or a bow or something of a color to match their assigned set and make-up.

Dara was assigned a pretty lavender as her color, and was slated to go last in the individuals. They were to be taken before the group concept shot, because the group shot required a slight adjustment of the set. Yuri would have liked to chat with Dara, but the popstar was flitting nervously about the edge of her set area.

When Yuri asked YeongSaeng why, he replied, "Dara's gonna have a tough time with this. She can do cute, sexy, angry, whatever . . . but surprised? They couldn't have designed something harder for her. I don't think she's ever actually been surprised, at least not in a good way, so her face doesn't know what it should look like. We did a surprise-type concept a few years ago and it didn't go well for her."

Donghae added, "You can imitate what you see others doing, but Dara's totally original. She really _can't_ copy, it's like she's hardwired to only be herself, and she herself has never been truly surprised."

"Really? Hmmm," Yuri said wanting to pay Dara back for all of the Jay-lessons. Then inspiration struck, and if _this_ wasn't something that would surprise her, Yuri couldn't think of what on earth would.

She trotted over to Dara, trying to time it just right. MinJi was the last up before Dara and the cameraman was clicking away as Yuri caught Dara's attention. "Did something happen?" Dara asked, a bit dazed. She'd been thinking too hard about this again, and now she was stressed rather than surprised. With her nerves pulled this tight, Dara doubted she'd even be able to pull off cute, let alone surprised and cute.

"No, nothing's happened," Yuri said, eyeing the cameraman as he clicked away. Then the moment she'd been waiting for, his dismissal of MinJi. "I just remembered that I have a message for you from my brother."

"What is it?" Dara asked, perplexed.

The photographer called her name just then and Yuri pushed her towards where she was supposed to be, saying, "I tell you later."

It was obvious that Dara was having a hard time with the surprised face after only two flashes of the camera. It probably hadn't helped that now Dara was also thinking about what Jay could possibly have to say to her. Donghae even commented on it. "If whatever you just whispered was your plan to get her to relax, I think it failed."

"Miserably," YeongSaeng added.

"Oh really? Watch this," Yuri said confidently. She moved to one side of Dara's set so that she could make eye contact with her and keep her looking at the camera. "Hey, Dara! You know that thing I was gonna tell you? The exact words of it are sa-rang-hae-yo . . ." Yuri said slowly, enunciating every syllable. _I love you._

It had the desired effect. Dara's eyes widened; her cheeks turned a perfect rosy flushed color, and her lips curled into a perfect circle while managing to smile at the same time. The perfect picture of surprise, literally.

Of course, the announcement stunned everyone else in the room as well. Though Dara's session was able to finish up way ahead of schedule, it took another few minutes before any one of the idols was sentient enough to take orders. The set was rearranged by the warehouse staff and the girls, all still a bit dazed, were positioned by the stylists like puppets. Fortunately, dazed was an acceptable look of this series of group shots, so the cameraman didn't have any complaints.

But then it was Mellow's turn take the stage. Their set was a fake beach, complete with dolphins to be CGed into the green screen background, and real sand for them to sink their feet into. Their concept was light and summery, and dazed was not an expression that fit the scene. After a lot of snapping in front of faces and a few ice cubes down the backs of their white T-shirts, the group managed to refocus.

As Mellow worked the beach scene, Action needed to get changed. Yuri found a black suit that would fit her on one of the seemingly endless racks of clothing the warehouse contained, and a pair of oversized sunglasses that would make anyone in America think she was a Fed. Action's make-up was very simple, just enough to make them look good under the lights. And their set was a well lit corner of the warehouse itself, they were going for the mysterious alleyway vibe. The set was supposed to be legit, making the first group shots mature and sexy, while the second series was supposed to be crazy and silly, while still being set in a serious environment. Action also was designated to take two series of individual shots; they were the feature sub-group since they had the new member in their ranks.

While Yuri stood by the sidelines and absorbed all of this information, the rest of her usual little group went back to playing soccer. The girls, since they had been wearing _sooo_ much make-up had gone to make use of the showers the photography company provided. So Yuri was left to gawk at the set she would be using in peace.

Until YoungJae popped up beside her, that was.

He wasn't the kind of person to beat around the bush. "What you said to Dara, did you mean it?"

"Yeah," Yuri replied with a grin, Jay liked her anyhow. He just hadn't said so yet. This was really a public service, helping two people who ought to get together do so.

"She really likes you, you know?"

"That's why I had to guts to say it," Yuri said. It also helped that it wasn't really _her_ confessing.

YoungJae stared hard at his band member, Jay didn't look like a man that had just confessed to the girl of his dreams, and that worried him. "If you're not serious about this . . . I don't want you to make things hard for her, or for you."

Yuri turned the tables on him. "When we break up, it'll be awkward. That's what you're thinking, right? Well, it's only awkward if you let be. I've had my share of bad breakups, so trust me. Once I had to spend three months on a tiny little ship in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with my ex; and our marine biology professor was the only other person there. I'm not gonna lie, it was rough, but we got over it and were able to work together on the project. That's what'll happen here. And there _is_ that slight chance that we might get the happily ever after," Yuri added as an afterthought. It was possible that Jay and Dara would truly be in love and get married and what not; it just wasn't likely, finding true love at age twenty.

YoungJae thought that there was something in his story that wasn't very Jay, but he decided not to investigate. Whatever it was, he was sure that the best option in terms of the band was to ignore it. His main concern was the relationship between Jay and Dara, and how it would affect the band as a whole.

"You're both still part of an active idol group, you can't go gallivanting though Seoul on dates every day, we have work to do," he warned.

"I know, besides we both love our jobs. I doubt either of us would ever want it any other way," Yuri said, trying to sound like she was talking about herself rather than her brother.

"And you still have to sleep in your own rooms. I won't tolerate _that_ kind of disruption within my band," YoungJae said vehemently.

Yuri tried not to gag at the thought. "I think _that_ would be _way_ too awkward for us _all_ to deal with. And I think it's your turn."

As YoungJae reluctant obeyed the cameraman's call, Dara arrived. She'd rushed through her shower and her hair was still damp from it. She just couldn't concentrate on the task of blow-drying, so she'd given up and went to seek out Yuri.

Yuri saw her coming and before Dara could even ask one of her questions, Yuri was answering them, quietly though, with a careful eye watching for people near enough to overhear. "Yes, Jay really likes you. No, he did not explicitly say so, or tell me to say so for him. No, he does not know I told you. Yes, I'm sure he really likes you, just like I'm sure that you really like him. YoungJae's not particularly pleased, but I'm pretty sure he's given consent. Anything else?"

Dara laughed. "I think that covers it. And thank you, for helping me with the picture, even if Jay decides not to own up to your confession."

"Will you stop that? The boy's head over heels for you!"

Shaking her head in shy disbelief, Dara said, "You're needed for your close up, Jaebeom-oppa."

Yuri found her reaction cute, as Dara was not the typical girly girl in any way. Yuri'd seen her in cargo pants more often than dresses, and she was more attached to Donghae and YeongSaeng than any of her female bandmates, so it was interesting to see her feminine side.

The Action set was a fairly quick one to shoot, at least compared to the others. Only a few pictures were needed of them posing maturely, and goofing off came naturally to them so great shots were easy to come by. YeongSaeng found brightly colored plastic water pistols for everyone, though he himself refused to hold one for sake of the day-glow orange Tommy-squirt he'd dug up. He looked oh-so 30's gangster with it slung over his shoulder for the close in shots. Yuri's favorite was their last group shot, where she and Donghae stood back to back with guns raised, one green and one orange against the dark backdrop, with their hats and sunglasses on as they wore terribly serious expressions and were encircled by their bandmates acting the part of the 'bad-guys' and looking just as ridiculous. If she ever got a copy of that photo, she was sure she would want it framed.

While Yuri was enjoying her day, the others of the band were in puzzled conversation. SooHyun was most vocal about her confusion, seeing as it had been her who had suggested the girlfriend-in-hospital theory to begin with. "Who else could be in Japan, then? He obviously cares strongly for her."

"Could it be his sister?" MinJi suggested. "He hasn't really been talking about her lately, and he tried to dodge the question of where she was . . ."

Jinki and JongHyun disagreed. "He'd be a wreck if Yuri were in the hospital. The girl's more like his mom than his sister."

"But I was _sooo_ sure!" SooHyun whined.

JiEun mentioned, "Dara wasn't though, she must have known that Jay liked her, and that's why she didn't like your explanation."

"It was Donghae that convinced her, though," Chansung said, adding, "He was the first to say that you were wrong."

"Didn't he know all along? They've been like best buds since his debut concert," JongHyun contributed with a glance in the popstar's direction as he posed for his solo shots. YeongSaeng and KyuJeon were unsurprisingly just to the sidelines, but with them was Jay, who until the concert hadn't been particularly close to any of them. And Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi were gathered there as well. Dara made for a predictable addition to the group, but Jaebi and SeungMi were usually more connected to KyuJeon than Jay, though now they were standing exactly opposite him at Jay's side.

Jinki was the most confused of them all. "He's been really different since the concert. He's sorta normal, but not . . . I don't get it."

They all understood what Jinki meant, and none of them could figure it out either. It wasn't for want of trying; they spent the rest of the shoot working to come up with an acceptable answer. They even confronted Donghae while Jay was doing his solo shoot, but he had nothing to say on the issue other than, "You guys are overanalyzing this. Sure, something's up, but if Jay wanted us to know what it was, he would have told us."

"You're officially no fun at all," Jinki declared with a pout.

YoungJae though, agreed with Donghae. "If he needs to tell us, he will, until then all you're going to do by stressing over it is get yourselves worn out. Don't forget that we have a tough schedule to follow this week."

Reluctantly the members dropped the subject for the night. They would surely return to it in the morning, but for now they would content themselves with observing the new couple; which proved to be even stranger than observing Jay alone.

Considering that just about everything had changed in the way the band considered Jay and Dara, their interactions hadn't changed at all. Not even a little. There was no hand holding, and there was no more whispering than usual; and those conversations almost always included SeungMi and Jaebi as well, so the romantic nothings theory was out. Though the band took pains to get them to sit together in the back of one of the vans, Dara ended up sitting by SeungMi and JiEun in front of Jay who was between YeongSaeng and Donghae.

It just didn't make sense. A new couple ought to be dropping excuses by the thousand to spend more time with each other. Even when it was strongly suggested that they go out and enjoy a dinner alone together, Dara opted for going out with SeungMi and MinJi, while Jay chose to say in and challenge Donghae to a game of cards.

Even Donghae found it strange, though he'd never been one to cling to his girlfriend. He'd expected there to be _something_ different about the way they interacted. But as they headed off to bed, the only notable difference in either of them was Dara's little giggle as she closed the door behind her.

The next morning, the band had low expectations for a bit of lovey-doviness, and even they were not met. Jay had vanished to wherever he'd been going in the mornings lately, only to return when Donghae found him, and Dara had slept in late as per her usual. They didn't even make an effort to walk next to each other as Coordinator Yuna shepherded them all across the quad to the JYG recording studios.

Recording days were the best and the worst days all rolled into one. They were long and hard and by the end no one wanted to talk for _any_ reason. Jinki once surmised that if an alien spaceship crashed down into their studio as they were finishing, no one would scream. However, the long days were also incredibly fun. The footage they recorded of them goofing off, teasing each other, and sometimes actually working would go into various behind the scenes releases, such as Jay's upcoming _Only For You_ music video.

Most of the day that wasn't spent in vocal sessions was spent learning American card games. Jay hadn't been particularly good at them, but Yuri was; and she loved them so she played to win regardless of the consequences Jay would have to face when he suddenly couldn't remember how to play the games he _taught_ the rest of them. Her singing was pretty good too, despite her worries that she would be found out. She kept to Jay's notes and matching the way he occasionally said words with an almost-accent. It was sort of degrading to her self-esteem when she had to re-record every song multiple times, but the others fared little better. It was a part of the process they said.

Towards the end of the day, as the long hours began to pile up to where speech was becoming uncomfortable for everyone, the focus shifted away from card games to magic tricks. Kihun was the best at them, though JongHyun was a close second. Donghae did this neat appearing flower trick that no one could imitate and he flatly refused to explain how he did it. YeongSaeng kept complaining that Donghae had learned it all from him and was just trying to pass it off as his own, though he would neither tell the secret of it, nor show anyone that he could in fact even do it.

Yuri caught him showing KyuJeon a few times, so she was willing to believe him. However, Donghae certainly had a particular flair about him that made his version of the trick unique. Donghae though, _was_ willing, Yuri noticed while she was taking a quick water break during her recording for _Pretty Girl_, to teach the trick to Jaebi, who promptly went off to show it to Dara and SeungMi after promising to keep the secret quiet.

He wasn't very good at it, but SeungMi was still delighted to see it. Yuri thought they were adorable together. She considered butting in a bit, sort of like she had for Dara and Jay. However messing with her brother's life was a given, messing with her friends' lives . . . she wasn't sure how welcome her contribution would be.

"Those two have been cute like that since long before you ever showed up, Jay. We've all been hoping that one of them will say something eventually, but . . ." YeongSaeng said sadly when Yuri mentioned how nice it would be for them to get together.

"Jaebi's just not as confident as you are," Donghae agreed with a sigh. "He was one of the most impressed of us all when you confessed to Dara."

"Speaking of you and Dara . . ." KyuJeon piped up, "You haven't exactly made any boyfriend of the year lists with your activities with her. Sure the confession was great, but how much alone time have you actually spent with her since?"

The trio tutted disapprovingly when she shrugged. "You're taking her on a date tonight," YeongSaeng stated, completely serious. "With Donghae and MinYeon."

Yuri nearly choked on the water she was sipping to soothe her throat. "What?"

"I think that's a great idea," KyuJeon said looking to Donghae for his thoughts.

He was wearing his adorable grin as he slung an arm around Yuri's should and rubbed his knuckles into her hair. "Definitely! Just let Donghae-hyungnim show you how it's done. Remember, it's your job to make sure Dara's happy all the time now, that includes flowers, compliments, and millions of little things that hapless guys like you get into trouble for forgetting."

"But my throat is killing me! We wouldn't talk at all," Yuri protested.

YeongSaeng produced a large bag of cough drops from out of nowhere, making his trick with the flower pale in comparison. "Oh, you'll be fine," he said, handing the bag over with a casual toss that made Yuri jump out of Donghae's grasp to catch it.

As she tried to keep her water bottle from spilling everywhere, Yuri continued to fish for an excuse. "But Dara doesn't like MinYeon-ssi, won't it upset her to make her go on a date with you two?"

"Oh, don't worry about that," KyuJeon said. "She likes you way more than she dislikes MinYeon."

"Besides, with what I'll be teaching you, you'll be able to make Dara feel like the only girl in the world, MinYeon or not," Donghae added.

"But I wouldn't want to intrude on your time with MinYeon," Yuri said. It would be impossibly awkward to go out with Dara anytime, but with the guy Yuri had a crush on while he was dating a girl that neither she nor Dara liked . . . It would be awful!

Donghae ruffled her hair. "MinYeon won't mind, she's fine with anything we do together. And _I_ want to help my adorable little dongsaengs out. This'll be good for both you and Dara."

Yuri's last hope was the band leader. "YoungJae won't approve."

"Yes, he will," YeongSaeng said with certainty. "Today is the last day we have before we start filming for the music video. That's at least a week of non-stop work for us, giving us a night out ahead of that isn't something he's ever objected to."

"And after that we start promotions for _HeartQuake,_" KyuJeon said. "So this is our last opportunity for some down time as a full group for a while."

With the air of a mysterious fortune teller, YeongSaeng said, "You should take this opportunity while you can."

"Now back to work! You're needed for your solo," Donghae said, pushing Yuri back towards the soundstage as Kihun stepped out for his break. "We'll make all the arrangements."

Donghae leaned on YeongSaeng's shoulder, watching as Jay took his place behind the microphone. He could easily pick out the moment the music started because the young popstar began to sway to the beat. And when he began to sing his head tipped back and his eyes closed, he didn't need the lyrics, though they were set before him on a music stand. The height thing had been something Donghae had ignored for the most part since Jay's debut concert. He'd assumed that since he'd never before really spent any time with Jay, he'd just never noticed how short he was.

"What are you thinking about?" YeongSaeng asked when he couldn't get Donghae's attention to leave Jay in any other way.

"I have no idea," Donghae replied honestly. There was something about Jay lately that made him want to take a closer look, like he was a brain teaser Donghae could solve if he just stared at it long enough.

* * *

I haven't dissappeared or discontinued this! Don't worry about that! I just had to move in to my dorm for college yesterday and it went . . . poorly. (My dorm doesn't have air conditioning and it was hot and sticky yesterday, so I was more than exhausted when I got home!) Hopefully, I'll still be able to post at least 1 if not 2 chapters every day as school gears up!


	6. Dates and Developments

A few long, slow hours later, they headed home. They were released one at a time, depending on who was finished with their recordings. Donghae was one of the last let out, aside from having more parts than many of the members, he also received an earful from the recording staff. The solo he was 'working' on for _HeartQuake_ wouldn't be able to make it onto the initial release, it would have to wait for the repackaged one. Donghae had told YoungJae that he wanted it to be first debuted at a concert and _then_ recorded for the repackaged album initially, and he'd said no to the proposition. So bearing the staff's griping complaints was worth it to Donghae if it meant that he got his way.

Meanwhile Dara and Yuri were discussing their upcoming date. "Dinner, a movie, and a walk in the park," Dara said. "It's Donghae's traditional game-plan for these things. But tonight I think we're gonna have to skip the movie, it's already pretty late."

"And you're okay with going, even though MinYeon's going to be there?"

With a resigned sigh, Dara replied, "Yeah, are you?"

"She's awful, but I don't see how I really have a choice in the matter," Yuri said. "And she'll be easier to bear if you're there to complain about her with me."

"Wear something nice, or Donghae will laugh at you half the night, but not too nice or MinYeon will," Dara suggested as they headed inside. "And cough drops are your new best friend."

By now the news had made its rounds through the band and they made sure to let Jay and Dara take the first showers. Donghae too, when he got home after giving MinYeon a heads up call about Jay and Dara joining them for dinner, was ushered straight into preparations. An hour later, the three were in YeongSaeng's blue and white BMW on their way to one of the fanciest restaurants Yuri had ever eaten at, but first they stopped to pick up MinYeon.

She had a bright smile plastered onto her plastic red lips. Her make-up was at least twice as heavy as what could be possibly considered healthy. The moment the car pulled up to her apartment building, as she preferred to spend nearly her entire salary on living in opulence on her own than to bear living in any dorms that JYG provided her, MinYeon leapt into the car and gave Donghae a deep kiss.

Yuri squirmed in her seat, and Dara mimed a gag.

Fortunately the moment passed, and then MinYeon turned her unwanted and falsely chipper attentions to the couple in the back seat. "Hey guys, isn't this going to be great?"

"Most definitely," Yuri replied without much enthusiasm. Dara silently agreed with her, MinYeon ignored the sarcasm if she even heard it, and Donghae was too busy navigating to be sure heard it clearly.

MinYeon began jabbering away, forcing only a minimal of interaction between herself and her audience. She commented on Dara's dress and how it looked lovely even with her narrow shoulders. She mentioned how cute Jay looked in his fedora, even though the checked pattern clashed with his solid colored jacket. She wondered if she was wearing too many necklaces. She was for any normal person, but in her mind, apparently having a large hand bag to match them balanced everything out.

At the restaurant, Donghae gave the keys over for valet parking and placed his arm around MinYeon's waist looking pointedly at Jay. It took a second, but Yuri figured out that he was waiting for her to copy the maneuver with Dara. It was awkward, but Yuri managed to slip her arm around Dara's waist with a straight face.

Donghae then led them inside. After he helped MinYeon take her seat, and Yuri had copied him with Dara, he whispered into her ear, "Keep whispering things to her, just like you were in the car, and lean in when you do. And if her hand's on the table when you do, put your hand next to it so they're touching. Oh, and let her order first."

MinYeon ordered nothing but water and a salad, Dara followed suit, though only because she didn't want to give MinYeon anything else to gripe at her about. She vowed to get a real meal as soon as they were free of here, and Yuri quietly volunteered to go with her, as she would need some venting time. MinYeon would not shut-up about her China Tour, though the parts about how Donghae made for the perfect boyfriend even in temporarily long distance relationships were almost interesting. Donghae apparently never failed to call at least once a day, and he texted her cute messages at least twice.

Partly, hearing about Donghae's sweet side was fascinating. However, with every new story MinYeon brought up about why Donghae was perfect and Jay should really learn how to treat a girl from him, Yuri felt a little part of her shrivel up and die. It was a strong crush, one of the strongest Yuri had ever gone through, but she consoled herself though all of MinYeon's stories that she would get over it eventually. And on the sort of brighter side, as Donghae was clearly perfectly happy with MinYeon, and Yuri had no chance whatsoever, she wouldn't have to bear with the tension of hoping.

And while she was taking lessons from Donghae-hyungnim, Yuri could enjoy some things about the dinner. Donghae had somehow produced a tiny notepad and spent most of dinner, when he wasn't actively speaking or eating, passing his student little notes. Often it was a good job comment with a cute smiley face, or a suggestion to try bringing up something specific that Dara liked to bring her into the conversation. Yuri managed to beg a pencil off of Dara, whose tiny purse was a black hole filled with anything one could possibly need to survive, without MinYeon noticing and returned many of Donghae's notes with commentaries on the discussion and equally goofy illustrations, which got more and more outrageous as dinner wore on.

Yuri was almost having fun, but she felt sorry for Dara, who was not only bored out of her mind and constantly being harped on by MinYeon, but was starving and antsy as well. Between the pair of Donghae and herself, Yuri managed to at least keep Dara from clawing her eyes out in boredom; showing her Donghae's notes helped considerably.

By the end of the dinner, MinYeon had spoken so much it was surprising that her throat didn't ache like Yuri, Dara, and Donghae's did from their day of singing. Even on the ride back towards home, she was non-stop jabbering as if she thought Yuri and Dara were actually interested in what she was saying. They paid so little attention to her that despite the reward if they would be handed a million dollars for the task, they couldn't recount even the topic of MinYeon's rambles.

Donghae pulled into a parking spot by MinYeon's building. There was a park behind it that wound its way to connect to the park by JYG headquarters. Donghae gave Jay a little last minute advice and then sent him off on his own with Dara to walk the way back home. "Take your time," he added with a wink as he pushed Jay to Dara's side. He arched an eyebrow and tutted loudly when Jay didn't immediately put his arm around Dara's waist. Yuri took the hint like a good sport and soon the new 'couple' vanished into the darkness.

MinYeon linked hands with Donghae, pouting. "Donggie-oppa, you keep paying your dongsaengs more attention than me!"

Donghae salvaged the situation with a few well directed compliments as to MinYeon's caring disposition and her ability to get Jay to relax for being the reasons he felt secure in bringing them along. She'd been unaware of most of the notes that passed between her boyfriend and his dongsaengs, which was very fortunate because she was the type to assume that any conversation that she didn't participate in was one that attempted to defame her. She was partially right in that respect . . . but no one would ever tell her that, especially not Donghae.

He took MinYeon on a nice long stroll around her building, listening to her mindless chatter and responding with feigned interest at the appropriate moments. His walk tonight was much longer than he normally took her on, to make-up for the fact that his attention had been almost solely fixed on Jay through dinner. Her feet, trapped in tiny little gold high heels that couldn't have ever been considered comfortable in the first place, were aching by the two thirds marker. Donghae made use of his strength and height to support her as they walked back to her building, while also making it seem to her like she was still walking under her own power as MinYeon wasn't a fan of appearing weak in any other aspect than for the show of it.

He sent her off and watched her go inside, leaning against YeongSaeng's car and wondering how Jay and Dara were getting on. He drove the car slowly back to the parking garage below the dorm building, where all of the band's personal cars were kept in addition to the platoon of vans JYG used to ship its artists all over the city. When he reached the floor the QuaszauR dorm took up half of, he realized that Jay's hat had been in the back seat when he went off with Dara earlier and he hadn't remembered to grab it before coming upstairs. He decided to leave it for another day, and went inside with only a moment's hesitation.

There was a group waiting up late for him. Well, SeungMi and KyuJeon had fallen asleep as they were waiting, but YeongSaeng, SooHyun, JiEun, MinJi, Jinki, Jaebi, and Chansung were all wide-awake and waiting for details. He told just enough to pacify them, curious as they were as to how Jay and Dara had behaved through their first official date. That they hadn't gotten back to the dorms yet had to be a good sign, right? Donghae was completely sure that it was.

"All he needed was a few pointers, and a little confidence boost," Donghae said as he carried SeungMi to her room. YeongSaeng got the door for him, and Donghae returned the favor when his friend was porting KyuJeon to his proper sleeping place.

There were a few dozen more questions thrown about in urgent whispers and Donghae did his best to answer them, but he was tired and needed a shower so after a bit he sent the eager audience off to bed. YeongSaeng stayed behind, asking, "How is Jay really? Still strange?"

"Yeah, but not a bad strange. It's sort of like his confidence for some reason was completely ripped out from under him," Donghae replied. "He's still sweet and kind and fun, but he's so subdued about it . . ."

"Are you worried about him?"

Donghae had to pause. "I don't think so. If there were really a problem I'm sure he'd tell us, and he seems to be getting better, don't you think?"

"I think he's still insane, and that you're just growing so attached to your little project of helping him out that you're starting to overlook how weird he's behaving," YeongSaeng replied flatly.

"He's not my little project," Donghae protested to YeongSaeng's deaf ears.

With a sigh, YeongSaeng challenged, "Prove that he's not by going straight to bed after your shower. Don't stay up until he gets home with Dara. They might not come home tonight, you know. There's always that chance . . ."

"Yeah, and my staying up or going to bed revolves solely around Kim Jaebeom," Donghae said sarcastically.

YeongSaeng just shrugged, thinking about the other little projects Donghae had taken on during their years together at JYG. "Just make sure you get _some_ sleep, okay? We have filming in the morning."

"Yes, mother," Donghae said, enclosing himself in the bathroom for a nice hot shower. He always felt drained after a night out with MinYeon. This time he also felt a bit exhilarated, due to his success with Jay's 'training' through dinner. Their note conversation had been truly quite fun and he planned to keep the notebook, with all of their little doodles and nearly nonsensical comments, for a long time to come.

When he finished his shower, he thought about going to bed, but quickly pushed the option momentarily aside for sake of a little down time. He hadn't had any time to just sit down and relax all day. He made himself a mug of tea, grabbed a blanket off his bed, and settled down on the couch to watch some television. Within a single program he'd drifted off to a restless sleep as the mental exhaustion from keeping MinYeon entertained took effect on him.

Meanwhile, the moment they had been out of Donghae's sight, Yuri and Dara had moved three paces apart. Not so much because they were still embarrassed, as that after a long night they needed a bit of personal space to reflect in. Dara slipped out of her achingly high heels fairly soon after starting to trek through the park, she'd only worn them because MinYeon would never have let her live it down if she hadn't.

Their next move was to find a place that served real food, so Dara could fill her stomach up with something it could actually digest. She'd been _so_ jealous watching Donghae and Yuri eating steak that her craving for meat was paramount. The only place they could afford after spending their daily JYG spending ration on the horribly expensively salad, that was open this late, and that served a semblance of meat was McDonald's. It wasn't quite fillet minion, but it helped Dara to feel full and it was genuinely a meat-product, unlike the ones served in America that were more plastic than anything else.

Once Dara gat gotten enough food in her stomach for the dizziness that came with hunger to abate, she grinned at Yuri. "You like him."

"Huh?" Yuri said, pulling her attention away from the reflection she made of her brother in the dark window of the McDonald's. She was really beginning to worry about Jay, he hadn't called yet about news from the MRI, or even just to update his baby sister on what was happening.

"Donghae, you like him."

Yuri blushed. It shouldn't have been surprising; she'd never been one to hide her crushes very well. That's why so many had turned into lousy boyfriends when they ought to have been left as happy daydreams. Even so, that Dara had discovered her attachment to the entertainer made Yuri giggle as her face warmed. She didn't try to convince Dara she was wrong.

"I_ knew_ it," Dara said proudly. "When Jay gets back we ought to get you two together, you know repay the favor."

"Oh, don't even think you owe me for helping with Jay, like you said earlier, he might not own up to 'his' confession," Yuri said.

Dara raised an eyebrow. "And like _you_ said, the boy's head over heels for me. Like you are for Donghae. The least we could do is get you backstage, _as_ you for once, and at least see what happens."

"But he has MinYeon."

Waving a French fry in Yuri's direction to punctuate her point, Dara said, "Who's 98% plastic and 2% air . . . Donghae will drop her in an instant when he 'meets' you."

Yuri shook her head and changed the topic, she didn't want to get her hopes up. Donghae was plenty pleased with how he was with MinYeon, she didn't want to upset that for him or put herself through the stress of waiting for him to see her. "How about instead of trying to get _me_ a date, you focus instead on helping me get _SeungMi_ one with Jaebi? Doesn't that sound better?"

"They are awfully cute together."

"So, how do you think we should do this?" Yuri asked, leaning in to whisper with her conspirator.

Dara arched an eyebrow. "Do you enjoy meddling in people's love lives?"

"It's not meddling," Yuri protested with mock affront. "I'm performing a public service! According to multiple sources now, SeungMi and Jaebi have been an unofficial couple for years. I just want to make a little _less_ unofficial. Besides, if you help me, it's not so much meddling as confidence boosting."

"Sure, it is."

Back to being an excited playmaker, Yuri went on, "I was thinking about the music video and I was wondering if there would be any way we could get them to play a couple for it and show them how good they'd be together. The song is about love at first sight."

"We've had that thing plotted out for a month now," Dara said, adding, "We can't make changes now. SeungMi does get to play the leading lady, but her lucky guy isn't Jaebi. It's your brother."

"Why? Jay can't act! He's terrible! He couldn't even make the cast list for our community Christmas pageants growing up, and they were supposed to be 'come one, come all' things," Yuri laughed.

"Then it's a good thing his sister is here to save the day."

"Unfortunately, I'm no better," Yuri replied, an air of seriousness falling over her as she considered that _she_ was going to have to play not only the role of her brother tomorrow, but also the role her brother was assigned.

Dara tossed a French fry at Yuri; they were the perfect non-lethal weapon, aerodynamic and easy to aim. "You're doing pretty well acting like Jay, that's gotta count for something. Besides, since it's SeungMi you can get over the whole awkward girl-girl thing like you did with me. You know, you could be a pretty good boyfriend if you ever really wanted to," Dara mentioned with a grin.

Picking the fry out of her hair, Yuri tossed it back at Dara. "You're ridiculous."

"I know, it's all part of my charm," she responded with a pretty flutter of her eyelashes. "I get to play one of SeungMi's friends, along with SooHyun, MinJi, and JiEun. Jaebi will be right there too, as one of _your_ friends, so we'll be able to give you moral support the whole time."

Yuri nodded slowly. "What exactly is the plot of this thing? For fifteen people to have equal roles, it's gotta be pretty complicated."

"We don't have equal roles, not this time." Dara paused for a long, draining slurp of her milkshake through a straw much too narrow for the viscous semi-liquid. "We're showcasing the new member, so you get to be the star! No pressure though, you're only going to be lead actor in a six minute music video put out by the world's most popular band . . ."

"Thanks, that makes me feel so much better."

Laughing, Dara said, "Don't worry, it's not too much. Really there are only three major acting scenes for you. At the club when the girls arrive, a pep talk from the guys outside, and then back inside when you get SeungMi to dance with you. We girls have a scene in the ladies' room where we give SeungMi the same kind of talk the guys give you, and there are two separate sets to run the full dance on for the random interlude scenes and the dance version of the video. And a few individual close-up things, for the fans and such, but those will be easy and quick to shoot. I think the total screen time for those bits is like twelve seconds . . ."

"And they want to shoot all of this in five days!" Yuri was shocked. The project sounded ambitious to do in a month, let alone one week.

Dara just shrugged. "Well, it's not like you have any lines to learn. They'll give you expression instructions on site. And the sequences are pretty short, so we can shoot five or six takes of one little bit pretty quickly. The two club scenes will probably each take less than a day. The two pep talk scenes will probably be shot in one long day, and the individual run-throughs will take a day, that'll be a lot like the recording session, only it'll be lip-syncing and only _HeartQuake_, but even _more_ exhausting. That leaves the two dance runs for the last day which will be _killer_ tiring, but possible."

Yuri just kind of stared blankly at her. "Because that sounds _completely_ doable," she said with a bit of desperation in her voice. Their current schedule, as relaxed as it was with nothing starting before eight am or running past ten pm, was hard enough for her.

"We'll only have to get up two hours earlier, JYG hardly ever makes us get up before six," Dara promised. "It's part of why they're the biggest label in Korea. They actually take care of their artists."

"My worry is that we won't get _home_ before six," Yuri wailed, thinking about the logistics of the shoot. She'd taken a film studies class at her university and the filming part had taken _way_ longer than she had ever thought it would.

Dara fidgeted a bit, trying not to show Yuri how likely her scenario was, as she said, "Shooting does run pretty late, but we should be able to get _some_ sleep. And only the first two days are on-location shoots, the rest are sets in JYG's studio."

It still sounded like a monumental task. Yuri's shoulders sagged in exhaustion just thinking about it. Jay was going to have to pay for a week at the spa to make up for this. She whipped out her cell phone and texted him as much. His phone was still off though, so he didn't get it, but it was there waiting for in him in a series of three sets of 160 caps-locked characters of ranting.

Dara yawned, stretching out her now perfectly satisfied stomach. "We should head back to the dorm, we've only got about six and a half hours to rest up before filming starts. Oh, and don't take your phone out around anyone but our little group. Pretend you lost it. Otherwise another round of ridiculous texting will break out and people will notice that your phone doesn't buzz when Jay receives a text."

Nodding, Yuri followed Dara as she threw out her trash and headed out into the dark. The McDonald's they had found was only a ten minute walk from the dorms, at least while Dara had her high heels slung over her shoulder. It would have taken twice that were they on her feet.

"Do you mind if I shower first? We should only use the one by the kitchen and you seem to be much better at getting up than I am, so . . ."

Yuri replied to Dara's shy request with, "Sure, go ahead, I'm gonna make some tea first anyway. Do you want some?"

"Nah, I should get straight to bed."

Dara showered with ridiculous speed, getting in and out before Yuri had even finished _making_ her tea. She decided to let it steep as she took her shower. Though she wasn't as fast as Dara, she managed to be pretty quick. Her tea wasn't even too strong by the time she got back to it, nice and warm in her pj's even with wet hair. It was just about cool enough to drink, so Yuri leaned back against the kitchen counter as she waited.

The dorm seemed so much bigger when she was the only one awake, though it never really felt cramped, despite having fifteen occupants. It was actually a nice place to live, and a nice way to live, with a big, supportive family all around. Yuri would miss it for sure when she went back to her lonely little school dorm, half way around the world from the only family member she cared to talk to. She was really beginning to miss Jay, so much so that it made moving to Korea an option she would truly consider.

Amid her musing, her attention was drawn to the couch, where a sleeping Donghae suddenly rolled over. He'd been completely covered by his blanket, which blended into the color of the couch pretty well while the lights weren't on, so this was the first Yuri noticed of him. Going over around the corner so she could see the whole of the couch and investigate cautiously, Yuri found that the television was on, though the volume was so low it was nearly inaudible. Still, any noise would be loud enough to disturb someone's sleep, and the flashing pictures couldn't be good either.

Yuri remedied the situation immediately, turning the television off with a quiet click of the power button at its base. The little common room alcove wasn't much darker for the action, the three walls of windows let in an awful lot of light. It was a little better though, and quieter. Yuri crouched by the end of the couch Donghae's head was at and watched him sleep as she sipped her tea. His face wasn't half as relaxed as it should be, but Yuri couldn't guess why.

He was in comfy pajamas, and he'd drunk at least one cup of chamomile tea, the mug was still sitting on the coffee table. Could he really be _that _worried about the filming? Maybe he was as bad an actor as the real Jay was, though Yuri doubted that severely. She adjusted the pillow he was leaning on, and pulled one out from between him and the back of the couch as she recovered him with the blanket. She also picked one of his legs up and maneuvered it back onto the couch; the angle it had been resting at couldn't have been comfortable. Other than that, she couldn't think of anything to do that would make him more comfortable.

As she sat on the edge of the coffee table with her tea, Yuri brushed the hair out of Donghae's eyes. He was so handsome, even when he was worried. After checking quickly for a fever and finding none, she tried some subliminal messaging; whispering soothingly that everything was perfectly fine and that he'd wake up completely refreshed in the morning. She poked gently at the creases on his forehead as she spoke, trying to manually iron them out. "You really are amazing, you shouldn't be stressed over something so little," she finished up as her own eyelids began to droop.

She was uneasy about the shoot too. However, she was also exhausted, so rather than stay up late and fret about it, Yuri was forced to collapse into bed and black out completely as her body did a full reboot. It wasn't a healthy way to live, but Yuri had used a similar technique to get through the worst of her exam schedule at her university.

By the time she woke the next morning, Yuri's body was rested and her mind, though subject to a throbbing headache and a lingering numbness that would pass with the application of Tylenol and caffeine, was ready to focus on whatever the day threw at her. It was only five am when she woke, but that was late enough to make going back to sleep pointless. She got dressed in a plain t-shirt, jeans, and a vest from Jay's collection of clothes, wishing that she would be able to wear a pretty dress like the one Dara had worn last night in the near future rather than all of this baggy fabric that quite literally made her look like a guy.

When she passed through the empty common room, she ducked around the corner to see if Donghae was still there. He was still fast asleep and to Yuri's relief, he seemed much more comfortable than he had when she left him last night. Inspiration struck as she stared at him and she rushed out into the grey morning light.

The man behind the counter at the coffee shop looked like he needed a few strong cups of what he sold, but he was more than willing to whip up a large iced mocha for Yuri. He even proffered up a sticky note when she asked if he had any. Using the pen attached the order-counter, Yuri scribbled out her message as she waited for her change and then informed the man, "I'll be right back."

Running back to the dorms, Yuri was pleased to find that she was still the only one awake. She replaced Donghae's empty tea cup with the mocha in her hand, bringing the mug over to the sink. It needed to soak a bit before it was washed because of the long-set stains from the tea.

Mission accomplished, Yuri trotted back down to the shop. She ordered a nice breakfast, an enormous whole-wheat blueberry muffin, and her own mocha and sat down at her usual spot. It didn't take an hour to eat her muffin, as long as she was able to drag it out, and when she'd finished she took a stroll through the park by the dorms. It was nice being out like this. Strolling around was one of Yuri favorite tourist activities, one she hadn't gotten in enough of before she'd been kidnapped into the world of Idols.

Thinking about it, she ought to be in bed right now, safe and sound in her dorm room. The strange part was that she only vaguely wanted to be there, where she was supposed to be. Before, she'd wanted nothing more than to get this over with and get home, but now though she wanted Jay to heal, she wasn't in a rush to leave.

"Don't worry, Yuna, I'm sure he's nearby . . . Oh, wait, I found him. Just go ahead and take the others first, we'll be there in ten minutes. Yes, exactly ten minutes. 'Kay, bye," Donghae's voice said behind Yuri.

It took most of his closing for her to realize what was happening. She checked the clock on her iPod, as it was a time piece that never left her side and didn't have the fit issues Jay's watch did. It was really late; her stroll had taken twice as long as she'd anticipated that it would.

Turning around, Yuri was met with an angry Donghae for the first time. "Why aren't you answering your phone? Do you have any idea how worried we've been? You didn't even leave a note!"

"Sorry," Yuri said, shamefaced. She really hadn't intended on staying out this long. "I just got a little distracted."

"Why is your phone turned off?" Donghae demanded. He was actually pretty scary when he was mad. Yuri hadn't noticed before how threatening he could be because he was always so sweet.

Yuri stuttered a bit as she gave out the reason Dara had supplied, "I-I lost it, a few days ago."

"Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"I was sure I was going to find it under my bed or something. I didn't want to worry anyone," Yuri replied, scrambling for an excuse.

Donghae sighed, running his fingers through his wavy light brown locks. That was when Yuri noticed that he wasn't wearing a hat. Outside. Donghae _always_ had a hat; he even wore them half the time he was at home. For him to be out and about sans hat was very strange indeed.

"And we wouldn't worry if we tried to call you and you didn't pick up?" He said in exasperation, "What if something had happened? What if you'd gotten lost or hurt? Or if someone had recognized you?"

"I'm sorry."

Donghae sighed again. He could hardly believe Jay's thoughtlessness. Putting aside the fact that he'd vanished on one of the most important mornings of his early career, he'd completely neglected to let _anyone_ know where he was. Donghae had been so panicked when he learned that no one had seen Jay since Dara had gone to bed last night he'd probably lost ten years off his life. The first place he'd checked had been the café Jay liked to visit in the mornings, and sure enough the man behind the counter had seen a guy of Jay's description, only he'd left some time before Donghae had arrived.

How he'd managed to stumble across his target in the park was miraculous, and as he looked Jay over, sorry and shamed, but otherwise perfectly fine, Donghae's heart rate slowly returned to normal. Rubbing the buzz out of his temples as the adrenaline wore off, Donghae proffered the drink in his other hand. "Want the last sip? We have to finish it up before we head out."

Yuri was about to refuse, when Donghae turned his signature grin on her. "Come on, it's good luck. At least according to the sticky note the caffeine fairy left, it is."

Donghae's grin let Yuri know that he was both, well aware of who the caffeine fairy was, and also no longer horribly angry with her. It was enough to let Yuri suck down the last of the chocolaty substance as Donghae led her back towards the dorms. The vans had already left and the pair went down into the parking garage to get their ride. Yuri spotted the car they had used last night and directed her feet towards it, only to be stopped by Donghae's hand on her shoulder.

"That's YeongSaeng's car," he said. With keys in hand he jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "_That's_ my ride."

The vehicle he was indicating was a sleek silver motorcycle of Japanese design. Yuri's heart kicked into high gear. Stunts were Jay's thing; _he_ liked the feel of an adrenaline rush. Yuri preferred the five star crash-rating that came with the nice boxy BMW. Bikes like this had the kind of engines jets did and had a safety-rating of negative ten. It was not something Yuri really felt like sitting on top of.

Donghae noticed her wide-eyed expression as he dragged her over to his transportation device. He handed Jay a sleek and silver helmet and slid his own device of scant protection over his head. Securing the straps beneath his chin, he instructed, "Hurry up, I promised Yuna ten minutes."

Without any sense of surety in her movements, Yuri slid the helmet on as Donghae mounted his silver monster. He grabbed on to the brim of Jay's helmet and dragged him closer so that he could make sure the straps were fastened correctly. Then he kick-started the engine and laughed when Jay jumped ten feet in the air at the resulting roar. "Come on, it won't bite. I can't say the same for Yuna."

Gradually, Yuri was coaxed into throwing her leg over the machine. Donghae grabbed her knees and adjusted her seat, he was not about to let Jay fall off. "Now, hang on tight to me." When Yuri shyly slid her arms around Donghae and latched her fingers onto the edges of his pockets, Donghae took her hands and pulled them further around, saying, "Like this, fingers laced."

It was a difficult position to hide her shape in, but Yuri managed by pressing her cheek, under three inches of foam as it was, to Donghae's back and keeping the rest of her a few centimeters safely away. Of course she forgot entirely about hiding her figure when Donghae revved the engine and the beast roared beneath her. Fortunately, she'd already positioned herself in such a way that Donghae couldn't feel anything of her but her helmet in his back, her arms at his waist, and her knees behind his, even as she pressed her eyes closed and nearly squeezed the life out of him.

Things didn't get any better for Donghae's breathing abilities as he coaxed the motorcycle out of the garage. Even at low speed, Jay was scared stiff. When Donghae ramped things up, getting them to a speed that would have them weaving their way across town in the quickest way legal, he thought his ribs were going to crack under the pressure Jay was exerting. He didn't really mind though, it was sort of cute how he was scared. Seriously, Jaebi, Jinki, and KyuJeon had some intense competition for the title of 'cutest male member' within QuaszauR's ranks.

Even by the time they reached the club that served as the location for their first few scenes in the _HeartQuake_ music video, Jay's grip hadn't loosened up at all. Donghae had to grin as he pulled off his helmet. Twisting in his seat, he knocked on Jay's helmet, saying, "You can stop holding on for dear life now, we're here."

It took a few seconds of quiet from the engine to get Yuri to relax enough to remove her hands from Donghae's waist. He swung his leg over the machine the moment he was free and set to work getting Yuri's helmet off. Then he secured the two helmets to the bike and hauled Yuri inside, they were perfectly on time, well, on time for being ten minutes late.

In a flurry of activity the reminded Yuri strongly of the first time she ever found herself mixed up with the band's proceedings, Yuri was rushed though wardrobe, hair and make-up in less time than it had taken to get from the dorms to the filming site. And then she was seated in edgy, club-worthy clothes at the bar, with a shot-glass of apple juice in her hand, and Donghae playing bar tender as Jaebi, Jinki, Chansung, and KyuJeon sat around Yuri, each with their own apple shots. They were celebrating something, the director neglected to explain what exactly, and Jay was a happy bachelor. When the girls walked into the bar behind them, Yuri was supposed to see them reflected in the mirror and watch as four out of five of them met up with their boyfriends, played by the remaining QuaszauR guys.

The lonely SeungMi was supposed to go about her business partying and saying hi to just about everyone assembled as Jay fell in love at first sight. The 'quake' part of _HeartQuake_ was this turn from loving life alone, to needing someone to share it with. SeungMi too, was supposed to act out this quake when she sees Jay for the first time as she goes up to the bar to order a dink soon after arriving. Then with drink in hand she goes back to the dance floor, regroups with the girls and confesses her crush.

The scene was to be shot in four little segments, each one from multiple angles. They ran through it a few times, to get acquainted with the few dozen extras that had been cast and to get them tuned into the flow of things along with the music that they were playing back on a large boom box to ensure that everyone bounced to the same rhythm and that it matched up with what would be laid over the video track.

Yuri's acting was terrible, but after a few more tries and some much needed support from Donghae and Jaebi, and tips from everyone else, she managed to at least not look ridiculous. The band was able to review each take alongside the production crew, so they could see exactly what they were doing wrong. It was a long day, but by the end of it, they had a few sets of usable footage that could be edited into a well done opening scene for their music video.

Dead on her feet as the band was released to head home at eleven pm, Yuri was instantly wide awake when Donghae mentioned that he had to drive his motorcycle home, rather than join the others in the vans. He asked if Jay wanted to come with him and grab a midnight snack. Yuri hesitated, though she really wanted to say yes, that motorcycle was _horrible_. Then Dara pushed her forward and Donghae got his yes. The two headed off to the out of the way niche Donghae had stowed the bike in so early that morning.

MinJi and JiEun were instantly on Dara's flanks, as the others looked on with sleep laced surprise. "What'cha doin', Dara?" JiEun slurred with the curiosity that managed to push though her tiredness.

On Dara's other side, MinJi was slightly more awake, if only because she was more interested. "You and Jay were getting on so well last night!"

"Oh, it's nothing," Dara replied with a small smile. Public service, Yuri had called it; the term definitely seemed fitting from this angle.

The two girls gave up prying for sake of sleep on the ride home, but MinJi wasn't so completely out as to not hear SeungMi and Dara whispering excitedly about what was going on with the two roaming popstars. They were both very pleased by the situation, which served to confuse MinJi even more. First of all if what they were whispering about was true, not only was Jay cheating on Dara, with her _help_ MinJi's mind added in, both he and Donghae were gay . . . which MinJi _knew_ wasn't true. No guy could keep a vain, proud, and sex-driven girl like MinYeon around purely as a cover, it just wasn't possible.

As MinJi sunk deeper into her cat-nap, she vowed to get the truth out of SeungMi when they got home. As innocent as SeungMi was, MinJi foresaw few problems with getting her way. She just had to spin her questions the right way.

Meanwhile, Yuri was again terror stricken as Donghae kicked his bike into high gear. Riding in the middle of the night had its advantages, namely clear streets and lack of sun glare. Because of these two factors he was able to ride slow enough to convince Jay to at least open his eyes to watch the passing scenery, and the scene Yuri first managed to open her eyes to wasn't an indistinct crowd half hidden by the sun. It took them more than twice as long to get back to the dorms as it had to leave them, but in that time Yuri was able to relax enough to not only let Donghae breathe, but also to keep her helmet from digging into his back. It was still utterly terrifying to her, but this was progress.

Donghae pulled up in front of a twenty four hour coffee house that was still a solid mile from the dorms. Inside Yuri settled in a very cubic armchair set before a gas fireplace that was operating despite it being the middle of summer. Donghae went to order as she tried not to fall asleep while she watched the flames. "Two non-caffeinated hot chocolates . . . and a piece of that chocolate cake," he added with a glance back at Jay. His sleepy face was propped up on one hand as he listed far to one side of his chair. The sugar wouldn't help him get to sleep, but at least he wasn't going to be getting any caffeine and chocolate seemed to be a particular favorite of the young singer.

"Here. Careful, it's hot," Donghae said, rousing Yuri from a shallow sleep as he delivered her hot chocolate. Then he set a piece of the most delicious looking chocolate cake Yuri had ever seen on the table between his chair and hers. Her mouth began to water uncontrollably; Donghae noticed her awed expression and gave himself a mental pat on the back for making the right choice. "Are you just going to attack it, or do you want a fork?"

Yuri blushed furiously, and swallowing hard, refused to meet Donghae's eyes as she took the fork he was waving in her direction. She waited for him to take the first bite before digging in. It was twice as good as Yuri had imagined it would be. Of course, this was the first time she'd had a piece of cake guilt-free since her eighth birthday. Donghae stopped eating half way through, gladly ceding part of his share to his apparently ravenous companion as he sipped his hot chocolate.

It was really quite warm outside for hot chocolate, but it would help them get to sleep sort of like tea did. Warm milk never failed to make a person drowsy, despite the sugar within the cocoa mix. Suddenly, Jay peeked up from eating. "Why do you have a motorcycle? I would think you'd want a car more like YeongSaeng's that blends in a bit so you won't be recognized."

Donghae had to think a moment before he answered. In that time, Yuri finished up the last of the cake, scraping the plate with the side of her fork to get every last smudge of icing off of it. As she licked her fork clean and then leaned back into her armchair with her hot chocolate raised to her lips, Donghae answered, "I guess it's another one of those coping mechanisms I told you about. I'm not interested at all in the workings of it. And I definitely don't think of it as a status symbol; sure it's top of the line, but it's not like buying a Bentley, or some American sports car import. But when I'm angry or upset, going for a ride always helps me clear my head."

"That makes sense," Yuri responded, sipping her hot chocolate slowly. "Near death experiences are known to make everything else seem manageable."

"Oh, shush, it wasn't _that_ bad, was it? Wasn't it a _little_ fun?"

Pursing her lips in a stubborn pout, Yuri admitted with an addendum when Donghae laughed, "Maybe a little, a _very_ little."

"You should try taking a midnight ride when you're upset. There's nothing better in the world."

Yuri wasn't sure if she replied audibly or if she just sort of nodded. The hot chocolate was almost as effective as the chamomile at making her sleepy. Donghae leaned over and ruffled her hair. "Come on, let's go home."

Nodding, Yuri drained the last of her hot chocolate and followed Donghae as he headed out into the night. She was able to put her helmet on herself this time, but Donghae made sure to check that the straps were just right. Yuri was about to swing her leg over the horrid beast of a motorcycle when Donghae stopped her. "Come sit in front of me, I don't want you falling off because you fell asleep and forgot to hold on. You're the star of our music video and if you die we have to reshoot everything!"

"Can we do that? Don't you have to, like, I don't know, _drive_?"

Grabbing Yuri's wrist and pulling her to the front of the bike as he slid backwards, Donghae said, "You're small, I can just reach around you."

Yuri only relented because she yawned so hard her jaw hurt while she was trying to say that it wasn't necessary; clearly, every precaution _was_ necessary. Sitting astride up front was a much more initially frightful experience than sitting behind Donghae. But when the driver in question reached around her to get to the handlebars, things seemed to get much less scary very quickly. That he was there to protect her if anything happened made it much easier for her to enjoy the ride. She didn't particularly notice, but as she was watching the lights of the nighttime cityscape swirl by, she began to drift off to sleep.

Jay's sleeping weight on Donghae's arm made it difficult to drive, but the roads were pretty clear and the ride was a short one. Donghae was just glad he'd thought about the possibility that Jay might fall asleep. If he had fallen off, Donghae couldn't begin to think about what he'd do. It was probably bad enough that he'd invited Jay out this late anyway; they had filming in the morning. Still, the late night adventure hadn't taken too long, an hour at most, and it had gotten rid of the stress that had built up in Donghae during the long day.

When they reached the dorm's garage, Donghae had to move carefully to get Jay's helmet off without waking him. He was light enough so that carrying him upstairs would be easy, but getting the dorm door open was a stumbling block. He sent YeongSaeng a text message, thinking that if anyone would still be up it would be him. His guess had been spot on and a few seconds later he received a reply that both he and KyuJeon were there to get the door and all Donghae had to do was knock.

Upstairs, the first thing he asked about was why there was popcorn. The entire dorm smelled of the snack and KyuJeon had a nearly empty bowl of it in his lap where he sat on the couch wrapped in his bedspread. Seriously, why had no one suggested buying a blanket for the common room yet?

"You should have seen it," YeongSaeng said with a grin. "MinJi was interrogating poor SeungMi, we thought popcorn was fitting for the show."

"What was she interrogating SeungMi for?" Donghae asked as YeongSaeng helped get Jay into his room.

"I don't think even MinJi knew that," YeongSaeng replied.

Back in the common room, KyuJeon added as they came into earshot of a whisper, "It was something about Jay and Dara. MinJi seems to think that SeungMi knows why they're being so strange."

"I think Jaebi's her next target," YeongSaeng added.

Donghae nodded. Jay had been forming something of a little circle of close friends lately, and the friends he was choosing weren't ones that Donghae would have generally predicted for him. They might actually know something about Jay's behavior. As much as the option of prying seemed appealing, Donghae knew he would just wait it out and hope that Jay would tell him eventually. Though, he would definitely be much more successful at getting information than little MinJi.

"Are you going to take a shower before bed?" YeongSaeng asked, tossing a piece of popcorn in the air to catch it with his mouth as he did.

"Yeah, but when are you two planning on sleeping?"

KyuJeon replied with a stretch and a yawn, slurring, "We're gonna finish the popcorn first."

There hadn't been that much left to begin with and by the time Donghae finished with his super-quick shower they were both in their rooms with the lights out. Donghae was about to follow suit when he caught sight of the grocery list sticky note pad. Quickly scribbling a note down, he slipped into Jay's room and stuck it to his lampshade. Then as quietly as possible Donghae made his way to his own room and fell asleep within minutes.


	7. A Little Meddling Goes A Long Way

Yuri woke up early again, but this time only twenty minutes before her alarm would have woken her. She was a little stiff, and still in her clothes from last night, but other than that she was fine. Stretching out her shoulder muscles, Yuri spotted the note on her lamp. _Morning showers are much luckier than caffeine. –_ Santa Claus.

It was the most ridiculous message Yuri had ever received, completely incomprehensible to anyone who wasn't in on all the jokes. Even the ones she used to exchange with Jay hadn't ever been so strange, she thought with a smile as she whisked though a quick shower. With the cute smiley face Donghae had ended the note with floating in her head, Yuri was able to shower without being depressed that she had to use the men's body wash instead of the pretty-smelling girl's soap. Since she was pretending to be a guy, she had to smell like one, and usually, the moment of admitting that was the worst part of her day.

This time during breakfast, she kept a close eye on the time and made it back to the dorm ten minutes before it was strictly necessary that she be there. Yuna was there to give her a disapproving frown alongside YoungJae for the worry she had caused yesterday, but when the reprimand was through, she pulled Yuri aside. "Did something happen with Jay? Was that why you went off on your own?"

"No, really I just got side-tracked," Yuri said. "I'm not used to the popstar lifestyle where time actually means something. I've been a college student for so long that the whole, other people are counting on you being here _now,_ thing has just kinda died."

"Have you talked to him lately?"

Yuri shook her head regretfully. "I've been pretty rushed with all of this," she said waving her hand in the general direction of the band's craziness.

"With filming and everything, I'd expect that you won't get to talk with him for a while," Yuna said sympathetically. "Do you want me to talk to him for you?"

"That'd be nice, I would like to know how he's doing," Yuri said gratefully.

With a sharp nod, Yuna signaled her understanding and got back to work. She got everyone into the vans in record time and across town so that they were back in the same bar, in the same clothes, with the same perfect hair and make-up as yesterday before Yuri had time to fret over another long day spent trying to act.

Today there were to be lots of partial group shots as SeungMi's friends and Jay's friends tried to coax them into dancing together. They were pretty straight forward and after only a few takes, even Yuri was getting it consistently spot on. The second half of the day would be the group all together dancing their _HeartQuake_ routine in the club. The choreography for the song's music video would be slightly different than for its concert performances, because the solo bits would be close up shots and it wasn't necessary for the singer to step forward to get the spotlight, and changing it a bit would help highlight the storyline's happy ending.

They ran through the new choreography a dozen times after lunch before the director was satisfied that everyone knew it well enough to begin filming. It was physically exhausting, but at least it didn't carry the same mental strain as acting did. The only thing Yuri had to worry about was her expression, but with the experience of college parties under her belt she was actually doing better than a few of the popstars who termed _this_ as the closest they had ever come to actually dancing at a party.

The good thing about the way the production crew had decided to shoot this segment was that it gave everyone frequent, if short, breaks. It gave Yuri and Dara time to work with Jaebi and SeungMi, as they tried to get the two to admit that they liked each other. They were making some progress among the shy smiles and denials, but unfortunately for them, MinJi was also making some progress at making SeungMi talk.

By the time they were released at three in the morning she'd gotten enough information to know that whatever was going on was much more interesting than a simple change in behavior. She knew that if she just kept pressing the right buttons, the easily over-tired SeungMi would eventually give up her secret.

The next day's filming session was just a quick walk away, so they were allowed to wake up at lazy six thirty. There were to be two sets for the dance version parts of the music video. One was a white set with a dramatic, black QR symbol in the background, the other was exactly inverse. Today, they were filming on the white set, dressed in varying shades of dark grey or black suits, or flirty dresses in case of the girls, with a tie, bow, pocket square, or sash that was a different color for every person. Two or three people wore similar colors of different shades for the ones that overlapped. Donghae had the flat cap that Yuri was learning was his visual trademark. YoungJae had oversized shades that would have made anyone else look like an FBI wannabe, but somehow worked for him. Dara had her hair in a high side ponytail that tucked up under a titled fedora so her wavy locks cascaded down one side of her face. Kihun had a few necklaces on, Jaebi had lens-less glasses, YeongSaeng had a plaid fedora, and KyuJeon had one glove that looked like a polar bear paw . . . Other than that, everyone was dressed pretty simply. They had to run through the revised choreography a few more times, to prove to the director that they still remembered it, before the filming actually began. For this part they had to be perfectly in sync while still showing a little individuality, but really it was the '_perfectly _in sync' part that was tricky.

All day was spent doing the same dance over and over and over again, until the footage that captured it didn't catch a single inconsistency. They got about as many breaks as they had the day before, one after every run-through, but they were much shorter, only long enough to review the run to see what they ought to do differently the next time. Yuri was absolutely exhausted by the midway point and ate her lunch in half dead silence thinking about all the ways she could murder Jay and make it seem like an accident. The good news was that the shoot finished up pretty early, at least in comparison to the first two days. By eleven they were back home and Yuri was completely out.

Dance version day two was no easier than day one. The only difference that Yuri could find between the two days at all was that on the second day they were wearing white suits/dresses as opposed to black and grey ones. And, if it were possible, Yuri went home feeling even more wiped out than she had the day before. As it stood, she was beginning to doubt that she would even survive the music video shoot, let alone pull off pretending to be Jay for it.

The last day of filming was projected to be the hardest, and it lived up to expectations. The day of filming the small groups of two or three and the solos on reproduction sets of the club they had filmed at earlier, _and_ on the black and white sets, for shots that would pop up during the action of the video to give each member some time in the spotlight as they sang, took an eternity to get right. Since each segment needed to have a blazing show of the singer's personality _and _they had to perform the same small scale dance as everyone else in QuaszauR, a good balance between the two was difficult to latch onto. And as the film crew wasn't aware of what parts were going to be used by the editors for the final cut, everyone had to be filmed through the entire song, from multiple angles, with other members littering the background to maintain the 'busy club' atmosphere. Basically it broke down into meaning that it took a really long time, would end up being next to useless, and that none of the stars could go home in case they were needed to fill in the background for a fellow member.

Filming ran straight though the night and well into the next morning. There was a brief respite where a short nap was allowed, but as they were already running over time, four hours later they were back to work until late afternoon. Despite their best efforts, everyone fell asleep at least once. Even YoungJae was caught in an unintentional doze as he leaned against a wall to watch the filming. Yuri fell asleep the most out of everyone. She'd never had to work this hard, for anywhere _near_ this long, in her entire life, so she fell asleep basically every time she sat down, leaned against whoever happened to be next to her. Though she initially tried to limit herself to Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi, Yuri ended up falling asleep against every single member of QuaszauR at least once.

Donghae only fell asleep once against someone that was not YeongSaeng, or something that was not a wall. Normally, he was as steadfast as YoungJae in his work, but running after Jay had drained his energy stores much faster than usual. He stayed consistently next to his best friend in a semi-doze, except for the one time YeongSaeng was up to bat and Donghae was left alone on a very soft couch. There were a few scattered about the set to make cat-naps possible, but certain members needed to make use of them more than others. Donghae only realized he had fallen asleep when he was jarred awake as a sleeping Jay slumped against him.

Dara was at Jay's side and flashed Donghae something of an apologetic look before closing her eyes and dozing off with her head tipped back on the couch. Donghae looked down at Jay and sighed. As YeongSaeng came to tell him that he was needed on set, Donghae carefully tipped Jay's head onto Dara's shoulder after a moment of dozing off again himself with his head accidently rested on top of Jay's. YoungSaeng's silent comment teased Donghae about how faithfully he pursued his caretaker duties, but both singers were too tired to make their little argument into anything audible.

The hair and make-up artists had to keep touching their work up, as sleep mussed hair and sleeplessness added dark accents to the idols' eyes and faces that were not appropriate for the chipper, playful mood of the video. By the end of the shoot, each idol was wearing so much make-up it was a nearly solid veneer on their faces. Not that any of them were really awake enough to care.

The only person even remotely cognate was MinJi, and she was reeling from her discovery. She'd finally gotten a half sleeping SeungMi to tell the full story of what was happening with Jay. The tale was so fantastic though, MinJi was almost convinced that it had just been something SeungMi had dreamed up in her nearly catatonic state. But as MinJi thought everything over, she had to admit that everything made a _lot_ more sense when put into the context of SeungMi's crazy tale.

She vowed to talk to JiEun and SooHyun about it in the morning, but really that was all she could do for the moment as she collapsed with the others onto the soft carpet of the common room. Hardly anyone moved more than a few inches at a time as they rolled over or kicked someone off of them for the next twelve hours, and even then it was just a few of them going for a trip to the bathroom and a reroute to their real beds.

Dara, to her great surprise, was one of the first ones to genuinely wake up. If it helped her wake up early, she ought to try sleeping on the floor more often. She took a cool, refreshing shower, scrubbing all the sweat, grit, and make-up from the past week out of her pores. After getting dressed and throwing her hair up in a towel, Dara made herself some tea. A heavy breakfast was _not_ what she needed after having eaten so poorly during the shoot.

As she sipped her tea at the breakfast bar, Dara sat on the stool so that she could see the mass of bandmates still tangled together on the floor. Surprise, surprise, Dara was able to spot Yuri curled up against Donghae's chest. The interesting bit was that he had his arms around her, tight around her shoulders and arranged so one of his hands rested on her cheek. Dara couldn't help grinning like an idiot into her teacup at the sight.

"They're cute together, aren't they?"

SooHyun had popped up in the kitchen behind Dara. Her chin was propped on her hands as she leaned over the countertop to stare at the rest of the band. Dara assumed she meant Jaebi and SeungMi, who were in a similar position to Yuri and Donghae. "I hope SeungMi wakes up first, that way she'll be able to _see_ that Jaebi likes her."

"Not who I was talking about," SooHyun said with a grin. "And you're really not even a _little_ jealous! I thought MinJi was crazy, but it looks like she was right."

"Right about what?" Dara asked cautiously.

Jutting her chin in the direction of the band, SooHyun said, "That's not Jay, is it?"

Dara thought about denying everything, but looking at Yuri snuggled up against Donghae changed her mind. "No, it's his baby sister."

From behind SooHyun, JiEun showed herself in the kitchen with MinJi. "So that really is Yuri?"

"How many people know?" Dara asked surprised at the number of people the secret was growing to include.

SooHyun began a count on her fingers. "Us, that's four; the real Jay and Yuri do, obviously; and SeungMi and Jaebi; and the manager and Yuna . . . so ten."

"What about Donghae?" JiEun asked. Looking back on how Donghae had behaved around her since the concert, and considering how they were sleeping right now, it seemed a good argument that he knew what was going on as well.

Dara was pretty sure that such was _not_ the case, regardless of the evidence. "Yuri's pretty sure he doesn't know. I think it's just that he's so attracted to _her _that he has to be nice to 'Jay', even though he doesn't know why. I don't think he even _knows_ how much he likes her."

"And she likes him." SooHyun's words were a statement of fact that no one questioned for even an instant.

MinJi giggled thinking about how 'Jay' had been in practice. "It certainly explains the instant ogling anytime _Beautiful_ comes on."

"And they can't be together because she's her brother . . . who's dating you?"

"Yeah . . . that part's technically unconfirmed, but Yuri keeps saying that Jay just never said anything," Dara said with a blush.

JiEun spoke up then, "What about MinYeon?"

Dara's smile vanished. "If Donghae ever figures out who Yuri is, she'll be history in a second. As it is, I don't think Donghae considers any time he spends with Jay as something MinYeon would disapprove of. They're worse than just 'friends', they're 'band brothers'!"

The four were silent for a moment. It was only broken by the shuffling sound of SeungMi shifting closer to Jaebi in her sleep. As the moment stretched out, Yuri suddenly sneezed, tucking herself into a tight little ball as a result. Her knees were then against Donghae's chest and he shifted his hold on her, pulling her toward him so that his chin rested on the top of her head. It was quite possibly the most genuinely affectionate way Dara had ever seen Donghae hold anyone, let alone a girl.

Then SooHyun grinned at the absurdity of her own suggestion as she said, "I don't suppose we could try convincing him he's gay?"

There was another moment of silence after the giggles passed as the suggestion was considered for real. Donghae _was_ sleeping with his arms around what he thought was a guy . . . and it would get rid of the problem of MinYeon interfering . . . "I think that might be a stretch," Dara said.

The thought wouldn't quite die however, as the girls watched Donghae unconsciously shift Yuri into a more comfortable sleeping position that used the crook of his arm as a pillow and her fingers wove their way into clinging to Donghae's shirt.

They were saved the suggestion of any other ridiculous solution by the arrival of Coordinator Yuna, which woke everyone still asleep with a start so sudden that none of them knew what was happening until she'd gotten them all in and out of the showers and ready for the photo shoot that was scheduled for that day.

"Filming the music video ran longer than we anticipated and we've had to reschedule _everything_ because of it," She explained to the people in her van as she drove to the shoot location while her fiancé explained to everyone in the other van. "I don't even have confirmation for half of it yet so I'm afraid I can't give you much of a heads up as to what we'll be doing this week, but as soon as I know something I'll give YoungJae a call. But don't make any plans, because we might not have any heads-up before we need to be somewhere."

The photo shoot they were heading too was for the music video promotional pictures, which involved them again being in the edgy club-clothes they had worn during the first three days of the music video filming. The pictures from this shoot to be released as teasers agonizingly slowly over the next three weeks. It was a legal form of torture, Yuri reflected as she thought about the poor fans that would be driven mad with waiting. No, it was more like revenge, she revised; for having to work so hard to make the video, the band got some time to bask in their glory.

This photo shoot was either really easy, or Yuri was getting better at the whole spending all day standing while trying to look awesome thing, because it was really quite fun. She not only got to spend time messing around with YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, DongHae, Jinki, Kihun, and Chansung, but also got to have a little chat with SeungMi during Jaebi's solo shoot.

"You should tell him you like him," Yuri said as SeungMi was not so subtlely staring at the object of her crush.

The younger girl jumped at Yuri's voice and with a blush denied everything. "I'm just trying to see how he makes such cool expressions," she said to cover her staring, at least she was aware of the problem. "I always have problems with my expression."

"Sure. But I think that if you tell him you like him you'll get to see a real expression, like the one I helped Dara make at our last photo shoot," Yuri said.

For a moment Yuri thought that she could sway her, but SeungMi proved to be just a bit too shy. "I couldn't be like you, so straight forward like that," she said, her face going a pretty shade of pink.

Yuri sighed, pushing any harder wouldn't get anything to happen so she gave up and watched the rest of Jaebi's shoot with the love-struck girl who until only recently had been refusing to admit that she had any kind of feelings for the boy she was madly in love with. It was such a ridiculous situation, worse than any drama she had ever watched because of how easy it was to get to the happily ever after segment, and how miserable they were making themselves over the tiny stumbling block

When SeungMi's turn came up, Yuri decided to have a little chat with Jaebi. It was even less successful, as Jaebi refused to even admit that he might have more than friendly feelings. Jaebi even threw out the same excuse as SeungMi for staring. These international idols, so creative, Yuri thought. She didn't drop the subject though, diverging from what she had done with SeungMi. A bit of a plan was forming in her head, one that would only work on Jaebi. SeungMi would just give up if Yuri tried this with her, but Jaebi was a scrappy little fellow, he would fight for it if he was pushed hard enough . . . Yuri hoped.

Dara noticed what was taking place by SeungMi's shoot and came over to investigate without interrupting. Her movement attracted the attention of the others, and soon nearly everyone was listening in. Jaebi was getting riled up and frustrated, and JiEun wanted to move in and stop Yuri from provoking him further as SeungMi's shoot was about to finish up, but Dara stopped her. "I think we should trust her on this one," Dara said slowly. "I mean, nothing _we've_ tried has worked . . . maybe Yuri knows something we don't about what they need."

Yuri just kept pressing his buttons, keeping an eye out for SeungMi as Jaebi swung away from the model to confront Yuri head on. She toyed around with him for another few minutes until SeungMi's shoot had wrapped up and she was within ear-shot. She raised her voice just a bit, to make sure the girl could hear clearly, "Come on, just admit that you like the girl and I won't make you tell her!"

Jaebi stuck to his assertion, as Yuri had thought he would, but had hoped he might not. "Will you drop it already?" He said genuinely angry, but speaking falsely, "I don't like, and will _never _like Lee SeungMi!"Yuri crossed her fingers as he finished speaking, this was the bit that she was counting on her luck to get through.

The room was utterly silent after his shouted announcement. SeungMi's little gasp could be heard by even the stylists gathered in the far corner. It broke Yuri's heart to see her big brown eyes fill with tears, but if things went the way she hoped they would this would all be a funny story in less than an hour.

Turning around in excruciating slow-motion, Jaebi stared at her, his expression horrified. Not that SeungMi could see it at all through the sea of saltwater welling up and spilling from her eyes. It made her make-up run in the most achingly tragic way and Yuri had to bite her lip to keep from crying as well.

"SeungMi."

Jaebi's voice was soft but it boomed through the silent studio. SeungMi lost it, throwing her arm up in front of her face and rushing from the room as fast as her feet could carry her. SooHyun, JiEun, and MinJi gasped in unison, their hands moving to cover their mouths as they began to tear. It was only sheer will-power and the threatening glares from the stylists that kept the waterworks from spilling over. YoungJae moved to follow his band member, but Donghae grabbed his wrist. "Wait a second," he whispered. "I think this is what Jay was expecting to happen, and I _know_ he's not trying to break them up."

YoungJae hesitated, but it was a long enough pause for Jaebi to swivel on his heel and shout furiously as Yuri. "Look what you did!"

"What did I do?" Yuri demanded, trying to sound unconcerned by SeungMi's rapid exit. "_You're_ the one that crushed her heart. _You're _the one the left her hanging on to hope. _You're_ the one that refused to give her some sort of explanation as to how you felt, even if it was only a friends thing. _You're_ the one that kept her wondering. And _you're _the one that let her run off! If she gets lost or hurt, or something horrible happens, I'm blaming _you_."

Yuri turned away and crossed her arms like she'd had her say and there was nothing else to be discussed. She kept an eye on Jaebi by peeking out of the side of one mostly closed eye. His expression fluked from furious, to worried, and then back to furious, in all of three seconds as he realized that Yuri was sort of right. Balling his fists up, Jaebi glared again at Yuri, but then spun on his heel and dashed after SeungMi.

The breath Yuri had been holding finally escaped her lungs. YoungJae pulled his wrist from Donghae's grasp and marched over to Jay. "What did you do that for? Things were fine before you interfered."

"Fine?" Yuri returned, affronted that her aid was being called meddlesome and wrong; especially as she was at that very moment desperately trying to convince herself of the contrary. "Have you _seen_ those two? They've been so stressed out thinking about their every action around the other that they can hardly function anymore! It's unhealthy. They're suffocating! This way, be they together or separate by the end of the day, at least they'll have cleared the air between them. And just maybe they'll be able to relax a bit, the last thing idols need is more stress, you should know that."

SooHyun was equally appalled. "You threw the status quo out the window and watched it get run over by a truck! If anything is adding stress to their lives, it's you!"

Even Dara was surprised by Yuri's bold action. She'd wanted to help Jaebi and SeungMi get things settled between them, but this . . . this was too much. Yuri stood her ground though, this was _good_ for them. It didn't matter what anyone said about her; sure she had to play the bad guy here, but in the long run, whatever happened here would help SeungMi and Jaebi live healthier lives over all. She hoped.

From that point on the photo shoot was awkward and quiet, but only a few more people had to go for their solo sessions, so the unbearable atmosphere wouldn't last for too much longer. That was Yuri's hope, but it was dashed when things got even _more_ awkward as the camera man packed up and left and the staff went with him and the band was left alone in near silence as they refused to talk to Yuri.

She had never felt more isolated in her life. It was absolutely horrible. When her parents had divorced, when her newly single father had left for the store and then not come home, when Jay had run off to be a singer; not one compared to how she felt now. Even Donghae was looking at her with a mix of wanting to trust and upset that she'd tried. The only thing that kept her from crying was her cover, Jay wouldn't cry at a time like this.

Of course, he wouldn't have gotten into a situation like this to begin with, but that was an entirely separate issue.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear; think of him, and apparently he'll call . . . Yuri's vibrating phone made her leave the room to answer. She'd lost it as far as the band was concerned so she couldn't be spotted talking on it. "Hey, baby sis, how ya holding up? I heard the music video shoot was killer!"

Yuri couldn't reply; her throat was choked with trying to hold back her tears from the band. Jay noticed this immediately. "Yuri? What's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm fine," she said with a sniffle.

"If I had known you were such a bad liar I would have tried to find a look-a-like off the street to replace me," Jay said with soft sarcasm. "Now, tell the truth, what happened?"

Yuri launched into the story, her words coming out in a torrent. Jay listened patiently. Yuri liked to walk as she talked on the phone, and as she was already upset and ready to run, she found herself out in front of the building before she realized it. She couldn't just run away, as appealing as the option seemed and to prevent herself from taking off, she curled up on a bus-stop bench. Jay tried to soothe her, but he really couldn't do anything from Japan and he was forced to give up when Yuri dropped the call on him.

She needed to cry herself out. Now that she was away from the band, the pressure to be her brother was gone for the moment and Yuri was unable to hold back her tears. The day had started out so well, she'd even begun to think that she was really friends with the members of QuaszauR. This had reminded her that not only did half of them not know who she actually was, those that did had only met her a short time ago. She didn't belong in their world, that had been abundantly clear from the beginning, but she never thought that they would all turn on her like this.

"I knew you weren't as heartless as you were acting," Donghae said slowly, making Yuri's head jerk up from her knees.

She stared at him a minute, lounging at the bus-stop like he was a regular passenger waiting for his ride. He wouldn't look at her as she asked hoarsely, "Why are you here?"

"Honestly? I don't even know," Donghae said keeping his eyes on the cars passing by on the street. "That stunt you pulled was really terrible. You have no idea what you might have cost them."

"They needed to confront each other," Yuri asserted. "They couldn't go on living like that forever, it would have killed them both."

At this Donghae finally turned his head to look her in the eye. Yuri stared back unflinchingly; she firmly did believe that this had been the right thing to do. "You really believe that this was necessary," Donghae said as a statement rather than a question, though by the sound of it, either descriptor could have fit.

"And you were willing to make everyone upset at you for it," he added with a bit of admiration creeping into his voice. This made Yuri look away; she didn't want to think about that. "Don't worry, they haven't turned against you. They're just upset, we all love Jaebi and SeungMi like our own siblings and seeing either one hurting like that . . . They'll calm down when the situation settles a bit."

Yuri stayed silent. She couldn't help but wonder if Donghae was wrong, if they would just hate her forever, if they would hate her brother forever. She wouldn't be able to stand it if she had ruined his new family for him, before he'd gotten a chance to really become a part of it.

"Come on, stop crying," Donghae said, slinging an arm around her shoulders and pulling her curled up figure closer to him. Taking her face in his hand, he rubbed at her cheek with his thumb. "Your make-up is running; the stylist-noonas would be so sad if they saw that you ruined all their hard work."

Yuri sniffled and Donghae ran his hand soothingly up and down her back. "Cheer up, you're a part of our family too. No one's forgotten that."

In another few minutes, Yuri managed to stop crying. She knew she looked horrendous, puffy eyes, red nose, smeared make-up, but at least she wasn't actively making it worse now. Donghae touched up Jay's make-up, wiping away the worst of it pretty easily. It was special make-up that was easy to remove because Idols often had to change their look quickly for a show, but that unfortunately meant it ran with even the slightest bit of water.

"Let's go back inside," Donghae suggested. He kept a supporting arm around Jay's shoulders as they walked, wondering to himself why seeing him cry had made everything he'd done okay. Donghae had been one of the most initially angry with the new addition; after all, it had been Donghae that had spent months patiently trying to build up SeungMi's confidence enough to get her to even smile on stage, but after only minutes with Jay outside, Donghae was back to completely trusting in him.

Inside they were met with a surprisingly light atmosphere. SeungMi and Jaebi had come back, and it did not escape Yuri's notice that their fingers were laced together as they stood among their family. The sight almost made Yuri smile, but she had a few apologies to give out. In return she got a few herself; everyone had just been so worried about the younger ones that they had needed to vent on someone. The group dynamic was a little awkward for another minute, but soon things were back to how they had been that morning.

Dara was especially sorry. SeungMi had been her substitute little sister since she'd had to leave her real one eight years ago to join JYG. The entertainment company was good about arranging things so their artists could see their families, but seeing a baby sister and taking care of one were two different things. After Dara had taken Yuri, Jaebi, and SeungMi out for a round of celebratory milkshakes at the McDonald's the two had been to on the night Donghae had dragged them on his date, they were able to head in as perfectly good friends again.

Only Yuri was the slightest bit anxious. She was going to have to leave here soon, and she probably wouldn't be able to come back for a long time. Not until Jay was a loved and steady member of QuaszauR to the fans could they risk Yuri being recognized and the plot being uncovered. She was supposed to be leaving very soon, she remembered, counting the days in her head since Jay had said he'd be back in about a week. Her week was up, and now she was living here on borrowed time.

In the morning she called Jay over breakfast in her usual café.

Jay was worried sick about her. "What happened? Is everything okay now?"

"Yeah, it worked. Jaebi and SeungMi are now officially dating," Yuri said, almost pleased with herself. "And I think you've been forgiven by everyone, we'll see how things go today."

"What are you doing today?"

"We have no idea yet, Coordinator Yuna said because the filming ran long our whole schedule is messed up," Yuri replied. Then she got to her point in calling, "When are you coming back? You should be the one dealing with this craziness!"

Jay laughed. "What, are you tired of being a popstar already?"

"Only a little," Yuri admitted.

"That's good, because it looks like I'm gonna be here for a while longer," Jay said.

With mixed feelings, Yuri asked, "How much longer?"

Jay started to answer, but then he recognized the sound in her voice. "Is that _hope_, I hear? Do you _want_ me to keep wallowing away in the hospital? Really? You're such a terrible little sister!"

"I am not, I'm killing myself to make sure _you_ don't get caught being an idiot," Yuri contested. "I think I'm a pretty darn great little sister!"

"Yeah, yeah," Jay said. "It's good you like being me, because according to these crazy doctors I've got another two weeks here."

Yuri swallowed hard, her big brother was really hurt and she was beginning to get scared by it. "Two weeks? Do they still not know what's wrong?"

"They have no idea. And I can barely walk," Jay reported grimly.

"So two more weeks of this . . ." Yuri said slowly, half terrified of the prospect, and half excited. She was more worried about her brother than anything though. "Does it hurt too badly?"  
"Only when I try to use it, and even then they've got pretty good painkillers here, so it's nothing like that time I got hit by the weed whacker," Jay said.

Yuri sighed. "Because it's really comforting to hear that this is at least better than the time you _almost died_."

Then her phone buzzed with a text message. Peeking at it as Jay tried to rephrase his original comparison to one that more accurately described the situation, she saw that it was from Dara. _YoungJae's on the phone with Yuna, we have a schedule to follow today so get back here._

"Jay, I gotta go, you're job is calling," Yuri said. "Love ya, bye."

She went up to the counter and bought four mochas. Handing one off to Dara, and one to split between Jaebi and SeungMi, Yuri kept one for herself and offered Donghae the last one. She was genuinely worried he wouldn't take it, but he accepted it gladly.

"You didn't leave a note again," he warned, taking the icy drink off her hands.

Yuri shrugged, "It was just breakfast, half an hour at most. And we supposedly never have anything start before eight in the morning, so I had time."

"Such a cheeky little brat," Donghae said affectionately, slinging an arm around her shoulders. Then he called out to YoungJae, "So what exactly are we doing today?"

"Another photo shoot," he replied without much enthusiasm. Half the band groaned openly and the other half clearly wanted to. "This one's gonna be fun though, it's for fan-service pictures, we haven't put any out in a while."

The band relaxed considerably, but Yuri was still antsy. She did not want a repeat of yesterday's shoot. She was going to be very careful this time around. Trying to gauge how things would go, Yuri kept fairly quiet on the ride to the studio.

Since it wasn't a promotional shoot for anything specific, the band members were allowed to choose their own outfits, more or less. There was a collection of clothes that coordinated well with each other waiting for them when they arrived. The hair and make-up styles ranged from very understated to pretty wild depending on the personality of the subject, but the overall feel of the day's look was supposed to be as natural as it could be for an assembled group of idols. These were intended to look like some sort of like professionally done selcas, a weird concept dreamed up by JYG management.

Fan-service was a popular Korean concept that confused even Jay, so he hadn't been able to explain it well at all to his sister. Apparently, the fans amused themselves during the time the band wasn't actively promoting by writing fan-fiction about what they could possibly be doing. Most of this kind of writing involved romantic pairings between bandmates, and these were not limited solely to male-female pairings. Since any kind of discussion about the band, especially on the internet, could increase their popularity, entertainment companies encouraged these fanciful relationships by having certain members act overly friendly onstage and by occasionally releasing fan-service pictures.

YoungJae was right, this was a fantastically fun shoot. The fan-service shoot involved the pairs as decided by the fans acting cute and goofing off in front of the camera. It was easy to do and entertaining to watch. And as Jay only had to go up twice, once with Dara and once with Donghae, Yuri managed to spend the day actively involved while also not making herself too tired.

Poor Donghae though, was in front of the camera for most of the day. He was the most popular member written about, and as such he had to have a few pictures with every one of his bandmates. Kihun was another popular member, along with Chansung and YeongSaeng. Yuri had just lost her last card in a round of ERS during YeongSaeng's fourth round of photos and was waiting to slap in when she noticed KyuJeon sitting in the corner.

He was watching YeongSaeng's shoots, though Yuri didn't know why. The reason they had started playing cards was because YeongSaeng was boring to watch, he was just being his sweet and handsome self as he stood for pictures with his bandmates. Nothing unusual or particularly funny or exciting . . . it was just YeongSaeng. "Aha!" Yuri shouted as she managed to get herself a new hand. She kept an eye on KyuJeon in the corner as she played it out.

He waited for YeongSaeng to finish up with JiEun and then he went up for his turn. It soothed Yuri a bit, thinking that his strangely dark expression had been because he'd been over thinking the whole guy-guy thing before his shoot. There wasn't a hint of awkwardness when he was posing for the pictures, she noticed, YeongSaeng even was coaxed into making a few ridiculous faces at the camera.

When the session finished and SooHyun traded with KyuJeon as YeongSaeng's partner, Yuri expected the unnatural ginger to trot over and join their card game. He didn't though, he just stayed back out of the way where he could watch the rest of YeongSaeng's shoot. It was puzzling to Yuri for all of ten seconds.

Her distraction with KyuJeon caused her to lose all of her hard earned cards, but actually she couldn't have planned it any better as it gave her the excuse to take a break and wander over to see the photography session up close. Yuri stayed quiet, but she made sure that KyuJeon knew she was standing next to him.

After a few minutes, KyuJeon said, "YeongSaeng-hyungnim's pretty cool, isn't he? He looks really good with SooHyun."

"She's too short for him," Yuri said. "I liked him better with JiEun."

KyuJeon's expression was a motionless surface frozen in equal parts admiration and dismay. Yuri slung an arm around his shoulders, saying, "I was gonna run out for a quick smoothie. Since we both have time, wanna come with me?"

Looking from Jay's smiling face to YeongSaeng back with SooHyun, KyuJeon hesitated. "I don't know."

Jay just smiled wider and clapped him on the shoulder as he began to forcibly steer his bandmate out of the studio. "Wasn't really a question," Yuri said as she dragged KyuJeon along to the shop she'd noticed outside when they'd first arrived.

It was a quiet little place, tucked out of the way of most of Seoul's midday traffic, so they had little fear of being recognized. As a precaution, however, they chose a table in the very back, hidden from the rest of the customers, to sit at as they sipped their smoothies. Yuri watched KyuJeon as his eyes wandered away from his drink and back towards the studio.

Yuri hadn't been sure at first, she'd never seen the courtship of this kind of couple before. But now that she was looking for it, it was completely obvious. "It's more than just fan-service for you, isn't it?" She said, keeping her lips wrapped closely around her straw lest she allow them to spread into a teasing grin.

KyuJeon's attention snapped away from his musings to focus on his bandmate. "What are you talking about?"

"You . . . and YeongSaeng," Yuri said slowly. She wanted to move with caution here, just testing the waters. "I saw you watching his shoot."

"He's my hyung, and he's so good at what he does, I was just—"

Yuri cut him off with, "If you say something about trying to learn about facial expressions, I may have to kill you."

"Just admiring his skill," KyuJeon amended, ducking his head in clear embarrassment. He peeked up through the reddish fringe floating over his eyes to see Jay's reaction as he said, "And you _can_ learn a lot by just watching him."

"You know, Jaebi and SeungMi said _exactly_ the same thing when I asked them the same question," Yuri said pointedly.

KyuJeon paled instantly and whipped his head around searchingly as he asked, "You're not planning on doing something like that again are you? 'Cause YeongSaeng's not like Jaebi, he wouldn't fix things . . . And he wouldn't be like SeungMi and run off."

"Are you sure about that?"

KyuJeon looked utterly disheartened for a few seconds. "Yeah, he wouldn't care enough to run . . . or to run after," he said slowly. Then he demanded, "You can't do something like that, it would ruin _everything_!"

"If you don't tell me what you mean by 'everything', I may have too," Yuri threatened, though she meant nothing by it. She wouldn't come close to doing something as outrageous again unless it was truly a life or death situation. But having that on her rep certainly gave her a little more sway in the negotiation process.

KyuJeon bowed his head in resignation, swirling his straw around in his strawberry smoothie. "I like him."

"Yeah, I could tell," Yuri said, unimpressed with his confession. "I want to know the whole situation."

"What do you mean?"

"You like him, but since when?" Yuri asked. Starting with the easy questions was always the best way to go.

KyuJeon thought about it for a moment before shyly offering up, "We trained together from the very beginning so he's been my best friend for seven years. I didn't start . . . liking him until about a year and a half ago."

"And you like him because . . . ?" Yuri prodded. She mostly wanted to get KyuJeon comfortable with the idea that he liked him, because it seemed to her that he was still trying to deny it.

This KyuJeon had no trouble answering. "He's such a warm and caring person. He does so much work that no one ever even knows about just because it'll help someone out. He's got the basics anyone would want, looks, brains, humor; but there's more to it, he'll never do anything halfway, and when he says something he means it. He's just –"

Yuri cut him off again. "So admitting you're in love isn't the problem." When KyuJeon turned pink, she amended, "Not the main problem. You love him, what's stopping you from telling him?" It wasn't just shyness, Yuri suspected.

"YeongSaeng's not . . . like that."

"Are you sure?" KyuJeon's hesitation was much more understandable to Yuri than Jaebi or SeungMi's. To confess in the usual way was awkward enough, it must be ten times harder to tell a person of the same gender; and the societal pressures the other would feel to say no, regardless of their real feelings, would be immense. It was certainly an intimidating thought.

KyuJeon nodded. "I overheard him talking to Donghae about it once."

"Because a half heard conversation is made of absolute fact," Yuri said with a sigh. "But you won't confess to him because you don't want to rock the boat. You like the friendship, right? You think he'll see you differently if he knows you're gay."

"Don't you?"

"Do I look like I think of you any differently?"

KyuJeon eyed her for a long minute trying to figure out if he was being teased. "No, you seem even more okay with it than I am."

Yuri just shrugged. "My college roommate, when I had one, was bi. That was a little weird at first but I got used to it. I even dated a . . . never mind, long story," Yuri finished up hurriedly, when she realized that _Jay_ hadn't even actually _been_ to college. "Anyway, the thing is you aren't KyuJeon _and_ gay. You're just KyuJeon, being one way or the other is just how you are. Like being lactose intolerant, it's just an aspect of who you already are, so I for one am fine with it. And _I_ think YeongSaeng would be too."

KyuJeon was steadfastly on the other side of that argument. He thought it would change everything, and he didn't want to risk it. He was perfectly okay with just leaving things how they were, because he was honestly happy. He liked YeongSaeng enough that just being around him would really be enough. His hyung didn't need any of the stress that came with a confession like his, and even if he happened to be okay with it, KyuJeon didn't want to put him through the ordeal of bearing the media backlash or the stress of hiding the relationship.

"You're a good person," Yuri said when KyuJeon had explained himself in so many words that Yuri was having trouble tracking the overall meaning of the extraordinarily long sentence that ought to have been at least three paragraphs. "And you really love him; that much is obvious. I have an idea for you."

"Didn't we just go through this? I'm not going to tell him!"

Yuri defended, "It's not for the two of you; it's just about you! It might help you feel better."

"What?" KyuJeon asked cautiously, as if just mentioning the wrong idea could mean horrible things for him.

"Do something nice for him, like epically nice," Yuri suggested. "Like make him a special breakfast tomorrow morning and leave it on his bedside table so he'll wake up to it. That way you can feel like you're doing something special for him, and you never have to say a word."

"But what if he asks why I did it? He'll know it was me. He always knows."

Yuri shrugged. "Tell him you did it because it's Tuesday."

"Tomorrow's not Tuesday."

"Exactly."

"I don't get it . . ."

Yuri nodded. "And neither will he." Checking the clock on her iPod, Yuri mentioned, "We should probably head back now."

"Why don't you wear a watch anymore?" KyuJeon asked, his head tilted to one side cutely. Yuri wouldn't blame _anyone_ for going gay for that face, it was just that sweet.

"Fashion statement," Yuri replied as she got up. She smiled at KyuJeon's puzzled expression, but didn't say anything more and made him run to catch up as she marched back to the studio.

Their arrival didn't go unnoticed, and in a few minutes they had both been roped into a game of soccer . . . that involved using vuvuzelas like polo sticks and the occasional bandmate as a pony. Everything fell perfectly back into place, as if they had never left. Yuri made sure to keep a special eye on YeongSaeng, to see how he acted around KyuJeon. There was definitely a strong affection between the two, but she didn't trust herself for knowing YeongSaeng well enough to be sure the love was mutual.

It was easy to forget that KyuJeon was constantly thinking about how he ought to behave around YeongSaeng, their behavior towards each other was just so natural. And they were each having so much fun. Yuri and Donghae teamed up against them halfway though, giving their game a semblance of opposing sides, though Chansung, Jinki, and Kihun were still just going at it free for all.

It was one of the most fun days Yuri had gone through while pretending to be Jay. Only one thing could ruin it for her, and that one thing called just as she and Donghae were singing away triumphantly, for besting the others in whatever goal their game had somehow developed, on the ride home. "MinYeon-ah," Donghae answered, crushing Yuri's good mood in an instant. "We just got out from a photo shoot. Sure, I think I can make some time for dinner," he said looking to YoungJae for confirmation. The leader gave a curt nod and Donghae went on, "I'll meet you outside in twenty minutes."


	8. A Cracked Facade & A Chink in the Armor

When they got back to the dorms, Donghae didn't even say goodbye, he just jumped out of the van and dashed down to the garage. As Yuri clambered out last, she spotted YeongSaeng's car pulling onto the street. It was pretty early still, so only a few people, Dara among them, headed off to bed. They rest piled onto the couch or arranged themselves on floor pillows to watch TV. Yuri showered first and made herself a cup of hot chocolate before joining the group.

Slowly, everyone began to feel sleepiness tug at their eyelids and one by one they decided to turn in for the night. Soon Yuri's only companions were the traditional night owls of the group, Kihun, YeongSaeng, and KyuJeon. Kihun was the first to go, and then YeongSaeng went to take his shower, ordering KyuJeon to follow suit in the very near future. When it was just the two of them KyuJeon moved in for his counter interrogation.

He'd been keeping an eye on Jay all afternoon, to make sure that he didn't try to say anything to YeongSaeng. During his observations though, he'd noticed something he hadn't been expecting at all. "Jay, do you like Donghae?"

"Do you always jump straight to the point?" Yuri asked, affronted and managing to neither confirm nor deny the claim.

"You're waiting for him to come back, aren't you?" KyuJeon asked, ignoring Jay's counter question.

Yuri looked down into her nearly empty mug of hot chocolate. "I'm just watching some TV before bed."

"You are definitely waiting," KyuJeon said.

Shaking her head, she tried to sound completely assured as she asked, "Why would I be waiting? He's with his girlfriend, and might not come back tonight at all; and mine is already asleep. What exactly am I supposedly waiting for?"

"Dara, you're really close to her . . . but you're not like Donghae and MinYeon are, or even Jaebi and SeungMi," KyuJeon said, switching topics abruptly and nearly as puzzled as he had been earlier at the café.

"And you and YeongSaeng aren't like them either."

KyuJeon wouldn't drop the subject. "But that's one sided. Dara definitely likes you, and _you're_ the one that confessed to her."

"Not everyone does things the same way," Yuri said with a shrug. YeongSaeng came back from his shower with a towel hanging loosely over his head. He barked at KyuJeon to get to his shower and Yuri was saved from having to answer any more questions. From scrutiny altogether though, she found no respite as YeongSaeng's keen observations were easily just as bad as KyuJeon. But at least he wasn't asking her anything.

To escape him, Yuri went to make herself another cup of hot chocolate. While she was up and YeongSaeng was still sitting in the common room as he waited for KyuJeon to finish his shower, Yuri went to grab a blanket from her room. It was cold all alone on the couch and she wasn't at all sleepy yet. She wasn't waiting for Donghae, as KyuJeon had said she was, not really. She just wouldn't be able to go to sleep yet, so she may as well not sleep where she would be able to tell if he happened to get back before she did end up going to bed. Besides, her bedroom didn't have a TV in it.

When she came back into the common room with her blanket all bundled up in her arms, she was just in time to see YeongSaeng take the towel off of his head and rub KyuJeon's hair with it like the younger boy was a damp puppy dog. "You have to make sure you don't catch a cold," YeongSaeng was reprimanding quietly. "We may or may not have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow," he added with a grin in his voice, though his back was to Yuri.

KyuJeon nodded as he yawned. YeongSaeng just went on getting the worst of the wet out of his hair. Then basically holding the younger boy up as he did so, YeongSaeng led KyuJeon to his room. Yuri smiled. If she hadn't been sure the deep affection was mutual between the two of them, she was now. She could hardly see YeongSaeng being as sweet had it been her in KyuJeon's place.

With thoughts of how she could _not-interferingly _help them out swirling around her head, Yuri settled herself to watch an episode or two of the latest popular drama before heading off to bed. She would only get half way though one before she fell asleep, but as she was just sitting down it felt like she had hours of awake time ahead of her.

YeongSaeng sighed as he looked back on his bandmate while helping KyuJeon into his room. The younger popstar surprised him by being awake enough to say, "There's something weird going on between him and Donghae, but he won't tell me what."

"You've noticed it too?" YeongSaeng said with a quiet laugh. "I was starting to think it was just me."

KyuJeon tried to reply, but he was already mostly asleep. He wasn't actually a night-time lover, he only stayed up late because YeongSaeng did. The older of the two knew it, but he still couldn't bring himself to force KyuJeon to bed any earlier than he did. It was the only thing that he let slide in terms of KyuJeon's health, because spending that time with him was usually the highlight of YeongSaeng's day.

Before going to his own room, YeongSaeng checked back on Jay. Donghae would have wanted him to. Jay wasn't quite asleep yet but he was clearly headed in that direction. YeongSaeng decided to just leave him be, curious as to what Donghae would do when he came home to find Jay like this.

Unfortunately, he was too tired to stay up and watch the show, but he could probably pry the story from Donghae in the morning.

The singer in question didn't arrive home for another few hours, and when he did it was with one of the worst migraines he'd had in a long while. Even a hot shower couldn't help it at all. His only option was to take a few pain killers, make some tea, and wait until it went away enough to let him sleep.

It was only when he had his steaming mug in hand that he noticed Jay slumped over on the couch. He was leaning on the far armrest with his feet tucked up under him. Donghae only recognized him because he went over to investigate and saw his head peeking out from under the blanket and listing at the most awkward angle as it rested on his out stretched arm. His hair was just long enough to reach his nose when his head was at this angle and Jay was snuffling in an attempt to blow the annoying strands away.

Donghae had to smile at the sight. He brushed Jay's hair back with his fingers before it could wake him up. Then he set his cup of tea down on the coffee table and carefully adjusted Jay so that he was in a position much more suitable for sleeping. Crouching by Jay's relaxed face as he sipped his tea, Donghae tried to forget about his headache by wondering how Jay had come to be sleeping on the couch, again.

"Why are you even up so late?" he wondered in a whisper.

Jay adjusted his shoulders as he slept and was apparently not quite as asleep as Donghae had thought, because he mumbled, "Nahnt waitem." It was a phrase that could be construed to mean almost anything and proved most unhelpful to Donghae. He couldn't even tell if it had been intended to answer his question or was just a mumbled response to something in Jay's dream.

"YeongSaeng should have gotten you to go to bed, we might need all the sleep we can get for tomorrow," he commented, frustrated that he didn't know the schedule. He began to stand so that he could turn the TV off and let Jay get some sleep when he felt a tug on his sleeve. Jay's fingers had somehow wrapped around the fabric. "Dom heave," he mumbled, which seemingly translated to 'don't leave'.

"I'm not going anywhere," Donghae soothed petting Jay's head comfortingly. "I live here too remember."

"Dom heave," Jay mumbled again. "Everon heaves, ahateit."

The last bit was really slurred together but Donghae's best rendition was 'I hate it', but Jay was slurring in English rather than Korean, and Donghae's translation skills weren't the best of the group.

"Alright, I'll stay," Donghae crooned, moving to sit so that his back was leaning up against the couch and his still throbbing head could rest on the seat cushion. His plan was to stay there only until his headache went away and Jay had fallen deeply enough into sleep that Donghae could slip away without worrying him. That plan was promptly defenestrated twenty minutes later when Donghae fell asleep. Neither of them so much as twitched for hours, the only movement that occurred at all was when Yuri's head moved to rest on Donghae's shoulder sometime before she woke up.

When she did finally wake, Yuri was shocked. She couldn't remember anything that had happened after she'd seen YeongSaeng help KyuJeon to bed, other than sitting down on the couch to watch one more episode . . . She certainly did _not_ recall Donghae being there at any point in time.

Looking him over, Yuri began to feel horribly guilty for having taken up the entire couch. When he'd gotten back from his date with MinYeon he'd made himself tea, to judge by the mug on the coffee table beside hers. He'd probably wanted to unwind with a little TV before bed, and she'd made him have to sit on the floor. And he had a headache, she could tell that pretty easily from the way his arm was covering his face like he'd been massaging his temples before he fell asleep.

She got up carefully and instead of taking her blanket back to her room, she wrapped it around him. It probably wouldn't do him any good now, but it made her feel a little better about having made him sit on the floor all night. She got dressed and headed down for breakfast wondering what she could possibly do to make up for it.

Yuri was later than usual, and the man behind the counter had already had his first cup of coffee. Because of this, he was feeling especially amiable towards his only early morning customer. "What's wrong? You aren't as annoyingly chipper as usual."

"Ajusshi," Yuri said slowly. "Do you have anything that's good for headaches? My . . . friend has one, and I sorta gave it to him."

"This is a café kid, not an apothecary."

"Right, sorry," Yuri said, she hadn't been very hopeful when she'd asked, but it still wasn't fun to hear that he couldn't help her.

The shop owner, the only person who was invested in the store enough to pull the early shift, stared at the downtrodden youngster. "You shouldn't make that kind of a face," he said, feeling his heart melt. "It's much better to see you smiling, I'm sure your friend would agree . . . I think I have _something_ that might be able to help you."

The kid's sudden, exuberantly hopeful, expression made him sure he wouldn't regret this. "Hang on just a moment. And pick out what kind of muffin you want this morning; I won't let you run off without at least a half decent meal."

He shuffled into the back room for a minute, returning with a small vile of amber liquid in his hand. "This is my own special brew," he said proudly. "It mixes best with hot tea and is extremely sweet, so you probably won't need to add any sugar. Sugar is bad for headaches anyway. It's very powerful so only add a few drops, okay?"

Yuri nodded and ordered two chocolate chip muffins and a large hot tea. The moment she paid, she bolted home. After taking her hot chocolate mug and Donghae's half empty cup of tea into the kitchen to be washed, she set a muffin on a plate and poured half of the tea into a clean mug. She did just as instructed, stirring only a few drops of the serum into the brew.

She added sugar and ice to the tea still in the paper cup and ate her breakfast as she waited for Donghae's tea to cool. While she was eating, a sleepy Dara appeared and wandered through the kitchen, dressed for the day, but clearly not entirely awake yet. "We don't have a schedule for today," she said suddenly, having found a sticky note from Yuna on the fridge. It took a moment to sink in, but once it did, she was wide awake. "We have a day off!" She almost shouted it, but Yuri kept her quiet.

She cheerfully made herself a quick breakfast of so many different bits of left-overs that Yuri couldn't even imagine how it would taste, though she was _sure_ that it wasn't suitable for breakfast. Dara hummed a medley of little tunes that Yuri also couldn't recognize, as she ate and watched her friend scribbling a note.

Then she sobered up a bit and said, "We have to talk, not here. About . . .'you'."

Yuri was puzzled, and slightly worried, but she added an addendum to her note and stuck it to the plate with the extra muffin on it and brought both the tea and the muffin over to where Donghae was still sound asleep.

Then she followed Dara outside into the morning, half delighted and half worried out of her mind. She was getting used to the dual feelings thing that had come with her disguise though, so she was able to focus on the happy side as they walked through the streets of Seoul.

Back in the dorms, activity was slowly developing. One at a time, the members woke to find Yuna's note, when exactly she had come in and left it was a mystery to them, but they were certainly glad she had. YoungJae, when he woke shortly after Yuri and Dara had left, posted his own note beside Yuna's, warning the members to be back home early and not to do anything stupid. Jinki came in with a yawn just as he was sticking it firmly in place.

Bleary eyed, he asked, "And you're going to be working again today I suppose?"

"Just for part of the day," YoungJae replied.

Jinki pouted. "Then JongHyun'll probably work with you . . . no fun!"

SooHyun came into the kitchen just then, a bright smile on her face. "I bet that if you convinced SeungMi and Jaebi, the three of you could drag him to the zoo, the guy needs a day off."

Jinki brightened at the idea and skipped off to find the young couple. They would like the zoo, he was sure of it. And none of them had spent anywhere near enough time with JongHyun lately; he was so busy helping YoungJae with the administrative aspects of the band. This would be prefect!

SooHyun looked at YoungJae pointedly saying, "He's not the only one that needs a day off. You should go with Chansung and Kihun to see the movie they've been talking about lately, I'll take care of the admin stuff today."

"Really?" YoungJae said, arching a suspicious eyebrow.

"Yeah, I really ought to start pulling my weight with this leader thing," SooHyun said. "I'll get JiEun and MinJi to help out, that way it'll only take a few hours. _You_ need a day off, seriously. I think the bags under your eyes are forming into black holes."

YoungJae only relented to her case, when the two helpers in question appeared, agreed instantly, and pushed their leader back into his bedroom before going with SooHyun to their JYG office.

The leader was certainly over-worked, and he laid back down for a quick nap, waking up just in time to tag along with Kihun for an early brunch. Chansung had woken up sometime between YoungJae's first trip to the kitchen and his second, and had promised to meet anyone who wanted to come at the theater in an hour via a third post-it note on the fridge. The last two to wander out of bed were the last two who had gone to it. YeongSaeng and KyuJeon joined Kihun and YoungJae at the breakfast bar, just in time to join the conversation over Donghae, who was _still_ asleep by the couch.

"I've warned him not to stay out so late with her," YoungJae complained. "He always comes back in awful shape. Working so hard to please her wears him out. He got lucky this time, but . . ."

Kihun mentioned, "It's really quite nice that he puts so much effort into her. Honestly, most boyfriends don't take that kind of trouble. Even Jay's not as enthusiastic."

"At least not about Dara," YeongSaeng added. "That's his blanket around Donghae, and he's the only one of us that goes through the trouble of getting a _muffin_ for breakfast. He's out with Dara now, but he made sure to take care of Donghae first."

"Why exactly _is_ Donghae on the floor?" Kihun wondered.

"Probably because Jay was on the couch," YeongSaeng suggested.

YoungJae rubbed his temples, he was going to have to start micro-managing their sleeping habits, or two of his most important band members would collapse one of these days. "Why was Jay on the couch?"

"Because he was waiting for Donghae," KyuJeon replied, sure despite the singer's denials from last night.

Kihun sighed, "I don't understand either of them."

"I don't think there's any harm in it," YoungJae said cautiously. "Donghae ought to have someone looking after him, and we all know that Jay needs whatever help he can get. So long as the kid doesn't try to pull another stunt like he did with Jaebi, I think we ought to just let Donghae handle him."

KyuJeon looked away, silently praying as hard as he could that Donghae would be able to restrain him. YeongSaeng meanwhile said, "I wasn't planning on doing anything otherwise. I personally think that this is probably good for them."

Nodding, Kihun said, "They've both seemed less stressed since Jay's debut concert than they were any time before it."

"Speaking of de-stressing," YoungJae said with a glance at his watch. "We ought to be heading out to our movie. Are you guys going to come?"

YeongSaeng and KyuJeon shook their heads. Simultaneously they announced, "Video games." No other activity had crossed either of their minds when they had discovered that they were schedule-less for today. Mario-kart had been calling their names for a month now, and this was this first day they'd had free to answer it.

"We should be back by six," YoungJae said. "_Everyone_ should be, but we'll see what happens." Nothing ever happened the way the leader planned for it to.

YeongSaeng and KyuJeon waved them off and finished their breakfasts slowly. They weren't going to stay quiet very long once they started to play the virtual racing game, and they wanted to let Donghae recover as much as possible before they started screaming at the screen. The ten minutes they left him wasn't enough to prevent his waking up with a migraine _worse_ than the one he'd fallen asleep with.

He felt like he was hung over, and as one of the very few members of QuaszauR who had actually gotten drunk before, he could relate that experience and this one with confidence in his accuracy. He couldn't even move for the first few seconds after a shout from behind him disturbed his sleep.

It wasn't until YeongSaeng crouched down in front of him and poked at his forehead with cold fingers that Donghae actually gained full consciousness. Though, how conscious one could be with a headache as bad as Donghae's was debatable.

He was at least cognate enough to understand as YeongSaeng said, "Ah, you _are_ alive! We were actually beginning to get worried, it's almost noon."

"What happened?" The details were really fuzzy to Donghae, though mostly it was his headache that made accurate recall impossible.

YeongSaeng ignored him saying, "You should eat. And this is the second time I've warmed this stupid tea up, so you'd better drink it while it's hot; here."

A warm mug made its way into Donghae's hands, and with a lack of both desire and ability to do anything else, Donghae sipped at its contents. The tea was _really_ sweet, almost too sweet to handle. Each sip made his head spin a little from the sheer sensation of it, but slowly he got used to it . . . well, no, no one could _ever _get used to something that sweet, but his head began to spin less and less, and the shouts of YeongSaeng and KyuJeon, which he could now identify by their voices, weren't quite as atrociously loud . . . By the time he was halfway done the tea, his headache had been reduced to almost nothing.

He looked around, trying to remember how he'd gotten to where he was. His glance caught a plate on the edge of the coffee table that had a large chocolate chip muffin on it. Seeing it made Donghae's mouth water, and in another instant it was in his hand and he was wolfing it down. At that moment, he couldn't remember anything ever having tasted half so heavenly in his life. He was absolutely starving, but the muffin was enormous and very rich, and in an almost magical twenty minutes since having woken up, Donghae found himself completely full and without even a trace of his headache.

Then he spied the note that had been attached to the plate. _Morning muffins are __so_ _much luckier than morning showers. Everyone knows that. By the way, the tea is magic. –_The Easter Bunny. There was even a post script; _the one called 'Jay' is going out for the day. If anything happens, call Dara._

Donghae grinned. He remembered now. He'd come home to find Jay half asleep on the couch and the insane singer had made him sit by him half the night.

"Did you say it was almost noon?" Donghae asked suddenly, realizing that he'd slept nearly eleven hours with his neck in a horribly contorted position. The tea truly was magic if it got rid of that kind of pain too, because Donghae felt not a bit worse for wear.

"Yup, pretty cool isn't it?" KyuJeon said as he waved his hands around maniacally, sure that by moving the controller he could somehow make his virtual car cooperate with his commands better. "Since we're all messed up because of the music video, we don't have anything to do today!"

"Where's Jay?"

"Don't you pay attention to anything, pretty boy?" YeongSaeng asked. "Read the note. He's out with Dara. Don't pout, grab a controller and get up here."

Donghae hesitated for a minute, but as he had nothing else to do with Jay on a date and MinYeon the furthest thing from his mind, he was soon screaming at the poor television screen right along with YeongSaeng and KyuJeon.

Meanwhile, Yuri had followed Dara as she rambled through the streets of Seoul until her curiosity had boiled over. "What did you mean by about 'me'?"

Dara sighed, slightly embarrassed. "Apparently, SooHyun, MinJi, and JiEun have figured out that you're not Jay. Actually they found out a couple days ago."

"And you're just telling me now!" Yuri was now in full panic mode, "Did they say they would keep the secret? Can SooHyun even do that? Do they know the _whole_ story, or just that I'm not who I say I am?"  
"Slow down!" Dara commanded. It silenced Yuri long enough for her to say, "They know the whole story, all of it. Including how jobs are at stake. They haven't said they won't tell, but they haven't told yet. And I have no idea what's going on with SooHyun. She's one of two leaders, so theoretically she should be obligated to tell."

Yuri ran her fingers through her hair; it was a much less satisfying gesture than when she had nice long locks to rip through her frustration with. "Then what are we supposed to do? You think we could spin it somehow? Like I'm some crazy fangirl that kidnapped Jay, told you I was his sister, and made you help me because he was 'hurt'? That way, if you guys all keep to the story, we could minimize the damage."

"And you would go to jail."

"But nobody would lose their careers," Yuri countered.

Dara still refused to even consider it. "I'm not letting you go to jail, and I think I speak for Jaebi and SeungMi, and I_ know_ Jay would agree with me."

Yuri stood mutely for a few moments, resolved to find a solution.

"We could just wait it out and see what happens," Dara suggested. "That plan has worked so far for us; maybe it will just work out somehow."

"Because planning for luck to help us is a _great _idea," Yuri mumbled glumly. Without any enthusiasm whatsoever, she said louder, "So we have a day off . . . how do you want to spend it?"

Dara grinned. "I was thinking spa day! Though . . . we can't use anywhere a popstar would usually go . . . because popstars go there . . . and they'll know who we are. . . and that you should be a boy . . . But we _need _to do something about your poor hair."

"The guy's shampoo has been killer on it, and just look at what's happened to my pores! It's terrible!" Yuri wailed.

Thinking for a moment, Dara suddenly said, "I know just the place! Damage control for those split ends, a facial, _and_ mani-pedi just because we can!"

Dara grabbed Yuri's arm and led the way as they raced through town to a side of Seoul Yuri had never seen before. It was highly residential, with narrow walkways winding through the crowed apartment complexes. Then out of nowhere, with no warning at all, was a salon. Dara walked in and pulled off her hat and sunglasses, completely fearless among the half a dozen customers and staff inside. "Ajuma!" She called, "Heo Ajuma!"

As Yuri's wide-eyed surprise fell into her field of vision, Dara explained, "I grew up around here, everyone knows me anyway, so we don't have to worry about being fan-mobbed, and since it's not a big place with security details hanging around, _you_ won't be recognized."

Just as Yuri nodded, a round woman of about forty-five came out from a back room, a take-out container in her hands. "Dara-ssi? Is that you? What are you doing here?"

She came over by taking tiny, bouncy steps that punctuated her words. As if that weren't enough, she was snapping her chopsticks in Dara's directions as the younger woman leaned down to give her a big hug as she said, "You haven't visited in _months_ young lady!"

"I'm sorry, Ajuma," Dara said. "I've been really busy."

"Yeah, yeah, you and your ridiculous career! Oh my," she said suddenly when she spotted Yuri. "Oh you poor girl, what the devil happened to you?"

Dara laughed. "That is a _long_ story Ajuma. But we're here to see if you can help it."

"I don't know, it looks pretty bad," she said, circling Yuri slowly. "But I'm sure I can do something . . . how long _is_ this story? Do you need to keep your hair about the same?"

"Unfortunately," Yuri said. The cut she'd had it in wasn't one that worked well with her face if not meticulously maintained, while she was a girl. The reason it didn't work well on her kind of face was because once it began to try to even itself out, she looked like a guy; which at this particular time was kinda the point.

The woman gave a curt nod, unquestioning. Then she handed Dara her food and clapped twice. "Kahi, JiYeon, get these girls sorted out. I'll finish Kim-ssi's hair, and Choi-ssi needs to be steamed for a while longer anyway."

There was a quick flutter of activity, Heo Ajuma somehow got her food back as she went to check with the customer that one of the girls in question was being pulled from, and Dara and Yuri were whisked into the back corner of the salon. "Kahi-unnie! I've missed you so much!" Dara said as the two salon workers began to wash her and Yuri's hair with some of the nicest shampoo Yuri's hair had ever felt.

"I've missed you too, Dara; you really ought to come here more often!" Kahi replied.

The other girl, JiYeon Yuri recalled, said, "And you should bring more friends too! What's your name, miss-friend-of-Dara?"

"Yuri, I'm her bandmate's sister."

"I was wondering how you two had met," Kahi mentioned. "Dara doesn't go out of her way to make friends so seeing you with her has made Heo Ajuma's _year_!"

"Heo Ajuma and my mother are close friends," Dara explained."I think I've spent more time in this salon than I have in my own house!"

JiYeon laughed. "That is probably not an understatement, your mom used to work such crazy hours and she used to drop you off here for the day . . . To get in the way of _everything_ we were trying to do, and scaring half the customers away with your _awful_ singing. Jeez, you've sure gotten better since you were five."

Yuri listened to their conversation in fascination. She was learning about a completely different side to Dara than she had known before and it was amazing. The history lesson went on for another ten minutes as the salon pros whipped through a double shampooing and moved seamlessly on to conditioner.

Throwing the wet hair up in towels, Kahi and JiYeon led their subjects over to the other side of the salon. Leaning back their chairs, JiYeon instructed, "Now, enough chatter. You should just relax now, or the facial won't be as effective. Yuri, do we need you leave your fingernails paint-free?"

"Yeah, unfortunately, for at least another two weeks, no nail polish for me," Yuri sighed as Kahi began rubbing a tingly, home-made, green paste unlike any other facial cream in the world onto her face.

Dara jumped in with, "Do her toes though, something cute!"

"Yes, ma'am, Miss popstar!" the two said in unison. An hour later the facial cream came off, and their hands and feet were equally as sparklingly well cared for. Their nails were being let to dry in the warm Seoul sunlight coming in through the wide Salon windows when Dara's phone rang.

She picked up to SooHyun's voice. "Dara, are you with Yuri now? 'Cause the girls and I were thinking . . . what we _really_ need is a little shopping time with Jay's baby sis. We're so jealous of you and SeungMi for having known for so long!"

"We're getting our nails done." Dara replied with a smile, "But we'll be at Handon's in half an hour!"

"What's happening?" Yuri asked, puzzled.

Dara decided to make it a surprise. "You'll see."

Ten minutes later and the intricate purple flowers on Yuri's toes had dried enough to put them back into the boots she was wearing. Twenty minutes after that, she had a mini heart attack as she came face to face with QuaszauR's female leader in front of one of the most popular stores on this side of Seoul.

"Yuri!" SooHyun said excitedly, taking the younger girl into a hug. "We seriously should have done this earlier! Oh you must be in shopping withdrawal by now!"

JiEun and MinJi were just as excited to finally be able to spend time with her _as_ her. Their reaction surprised Yuri immensely. "Aren't you guys mad?"

"Of course not," MinJi said.

JiEun amended, "Well, not at you. Jay's an idiot, and we're horribly furious with him. But you're just a victim, and a pretty one at that. How did we not notice this sooner?"

SooHyun was equally baffled, "I have no idea. You really are a pretty girl, Jay's not half so cute as you are. Oh, the opportunities we've missed because we didn't know who you were!"

"So you're not going to tell anyone?"

Pointing to SooHyun, MinJi replied, "We would tell her, and actually I did."

"And I would tell Yuna, who already knows. Really, I ought to tell the president of JYG . . . but that's leader business, and if you look at the fine print, I'm not _technically_ the leader, so all I really have to do to fulfill my duty is tell Yuna."

"Oh," Yuri said, dumbfounded. With her luck going so well lately, Yuri knew she was bound for a year-long string of rainy days when she got back to the US.

"Now the first thing we have to do is get you into a nice dress," SooHyun said definitively. "That way we get to see you all girlied up, _and _no one will recognize you, even if they recognize us."

She led the way into Handon's and soon Yuri was sporting a cute sundress that flattered her figure in every way that it had been trampled on before. She even had sparkly new sling back heels that showed off her prettily painted toenails. Jay's clothes were relegated to the shopping bag and Yuri's hair was put into pigtails, which though not her favorite style, successfully got rid of the guy-ish quality of her over grown haircut.

Shopping was something Yuri had sorely missed during her time as Jay and she was delighted to be back in the girly swing of things. And SooHyun, MinJi, Dara, and JiEun were the best shopping companions anyone could ask for; funny, exciting, very complimentary, and still brutally honest. Also, it was wonderful that they were famous popstars; the group was allowed to spend all the time they wanted in the most high-end stores in all of Korea, without appointments or lines, and none of the people that were forced to wait on their account were angry about it. In fact most of them weren't even expecting any kind of reimbursement, but SooHyun made sure that each of her bandmates signed something for the customers they were making wait.

It was quite possibly the most fun Yuri'd had since becoming Jay, well it was tied with the fan-service photo shoot. But really the only thing that could have made the shopping day better would be Donghae joining them. However, that would cause more problems than anything else, but Yuri could still dream.

Among their many fans were people with cameras, of course, and the ladies of QuaszauR posed for almost as many fan-pics as they had professional ones. They did it in good humor though, and Yuri was even able to help by being the one to take a few of the pictures so that the fans could have pictures _with_ their idols, rather than just of them.

Of course there were hundreds of questions about where SeungMi was, and who Yuri was. This was a great day for Yuri because she was allowed to tell the truth for once. SeungMi was out with a special someone, who would be officially revealed by JYG Entertainment at the next press conference, though every single fan could guess who he was. And Yuri was Jay's little sister, really. The only thing that they had to fudge was her stay in Korea: she was just in for the day from Japan to hang out with her brother's bandmates.

Jay meanwhile was not with them. They had ditched the big brother early in the morning. He had Dara's cell phone, because he'd lost his, and was probably just wandering around Seoul like an idiot. He was frequently getting lost, Yuri told one fan who seemed particularly enamored with her brother.

And that was basically how the day went for Yuri, at every store there were new people, new clothes, and new stories. It was delightful! She learned more about the girls in QuaszauR over the course of an afternoon than she had in the weeks she'd been simply observing them. They went out for dinner, a final hurrah for their shopping day.

As they ate, YoungJae was sighing in frustration that they were _still_ not home. He'd been perfectly clear in his note. Six pm. And as seven thirty rolled around . . . five people were still missing.

SeungMi and Jaebi had joined KyuJeon and YeongSaeng on the couch and the four were making enough noise to raise the dead. Donghae had given up his controller to SeungMi as only four could play at a time on this system and he wasn't into it anyway. He was curled up in a bean bag in the corner with his headphones blasting music as he stared out at Seoul's cityscape.

Kihun was on the computer, updating the members about the latest gossip about themselves, including some new fan-fictions that he thought were particularly interesting. JongHyun was half reading over his shoulder and half refereeing for Jinki and Chansung, who were playing table tennis on the breakfast bar using a squished paper cup as the ball and one of each their shoes as the racquets. YoungJae was . . . pacing. It was what he always did when he was anxious; really he was just worried about Jay. The boy seemed disaster prone, _something_ happened wherever he went. Hopefully, Dara was enough to keep him alive, and free of the craziness he carried around with him.

"Hey, guys check this out!" Kihun called from his post at the computer, "Yuri's in town, Jay's _sister_ Yuri!"

"Really?" JongHyun asked leaning down for a closer look. "She is! And she's with our missing girls. Oh and she's pretty, too. Jay wasn't lying."

This had everyone swarming around the screen, except YoungJae, who was still pacing, and Donghae who hadn't heard and wasn't looking in that direction so as to notice the sudden interest from the group. "Jay's not in that picture," Jinki noticed aloud, his voice puzzled.

"You're right," YeongSaeng noted. "Where could he be?"

KyuJeon suggested, "Maybe he's the one that took the picture?"

"Lemme read the article guys!" Kihun pled from beneath the pile of his bandmates that had quite literally jumped on top of him to get a better look at the picture. Shoving them off, Kihun quickly scanned the page. "They ditched him this morning." He laughed, adding, "A quote directly from Yuri is that Jay's, 'probably just wandering around lost'."

"Lost?" YoungJae said, his nerves about to snap.

JongHyun calmed him, "I think she means it endearingly, like he's wandering without direction on purpose."

"And he's lost his cell phone," YoungJae continued to fret. This is why days off weren't any better for him than work days. In fact, a full schedule was probably _less_ stressful than a day spent wondering where all the people he was responsible for had gotten off to.

"He has Dara's," Kihun commented as he continued to scan though the article.

"Someone should call him," YeongSaeng commented with a grin.

Nine heads swiveled in Donghae's direction. He was still just staring out the window, tapping his fingers to the beat of whatever song he was listening to. YeongSaeng kicked his house shoe at him, with perfect aim. When Donghae's head spun to confront whoever had knocked his headphones off, he was frozen in place by YeongSaeng's shout of, "Jay's missing."

"Isn't he with Dara?" Donghae asked, trying to keep his confusion from turning into outright panic.

"Dara's with his sister, and MinJi, and SooHyun, and JiEun; basically everyone we know _except_ Jay," KyuJeon said.

This gave Donghae pause. "Yuri's here?"

"Sort of, according to this she's probably already back in Japan," Kihun explained, having scanned the entire article by this point.

"And Jay's not with her?"  
"Nope, nobody has any idea where he is," YeongSaeng said, making sure to phrase it just so. In his head he counted down the seconds . . . Three . . . Two . . . One.

Donghae's phone was out of his pocket and Dara's speed-dial had been hit the moment he recalled the note Jay had left early that morning.

"Hello?"

Jay's voice sounded surprised as he answered after several long seconds of ringing.

"Where are you?"

"Donghae? I'm . . . around."

Didn't he check caller ID before he answered the phone? He'd certainly taken long enough before he'd finally picked up. The thought was fleeting in Donghae's mind as he asked, "_Where_ around?"

"What's it matter?"

Donghae was at the door getting his shoes on as he said, "I just saw that Yuri's here."

"Yeah . . . um, we had breakfast together." Jay was sounding very strange as he answered the questions.

"And then she ditched you?"

"No, well sorta, actually, I ditched her," Jay said, sounding rather muddled. "I wanted her and Dara to get to know each other . . . so we went shopping, and then we met up with the girls . . . and they wanted me to play dress up with them, so I just kinda wandered off."

Donghae laughed. He could see the scenario playing out easily, SooHyun was pretty over bearing with her shopping companions. Everyone _had_ to try at least three outfits per store, _no_ exceptions. "So where are you now?"

"Around."

"Is that code for lost?" Donghae asked, trying to sound joking even as he worried.

"No."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"Prove it."

"I'm uh, at the 63 Building."

Donghae wasn't sure, Jay hadn't sounded like he knew what he was talking about as he answered. "Are you sure?"

"Kinda, it's a pretty iconic building. I think it'd be hard to confuse with other places around here," Jay said.

Down in the garage, Donghae switched his phone to the earpiece he could wear under his helmet. "Are you being difficult just because it's fun or are you trying to say you don't want company?"

"Company?" Jay said the word like the thought had never crossed his mind.

"You've been alone most of the day, I thought you might be getting bored," Donghae said, hesitating to start his engine. If Jay didn't want company, depending on the reason, he would respect his wishes.

Jay responded slowly. "Bored no. I've been doing a lot today. But your company isn't something I would say no too."

It was all the answer Donghae needed. "I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Make it fifteen!"

"Why?" Donghae asked sending his bike flying out of the garage.

"Fifteen is a better number?"

Jay was such a weird kid. "Okay, fifteen minutes it is."

Donghae would have liked to continue the conversation, but Yuri hung up on him and turned a glare on Dara as the four girls around her giggled uncontrollably. "Why didn't you tell me it was him!" she demanded.

Yuri hadn't had any idea what was happening when Dara suddenly turned toward her in the middle of dinner with her phone, saying, "It's for you."

And because she hadn't been prepared, she'd made herself out to be a total idiot. Dara had been terribly amused, and the other three had caught on quickly as well. "It was more fun this way. Besides it all worked out well, didn't it? You have a date with Donghae in fifteen minutes across the street from where we are now."

"Yuri, you're blushing," SooHyun pointed out, which only made the pink color all the more prominent.

Adamantly, Yuri said, "It's not a date, and fifteen minutes might not be enough, I have to change out of this . . . I'm Jay remember? The pretty dress goes away at midnight for Cinderella."

"But she gets her prince in the end," MinJi countered.

"She also got to meet her prince while actually being a girl," Yuri retorted, getting up hurriedly to head for the bathroom. The others followed her, helping however they could. The pigtails came out and Jay's hair was styled with tap water and a bit of mussing up. The dress was replaced with jeans, a t-shirt, and a jacket, and the heels were exchanged for boots. Yuri watched all of her pretty clothes get folded neatly into the shopping bag they came from as she washed off the make-up she'd gotten to try at one of the high-end stores they had visited that day.

Then she was running across the street and into one of the most iconic buildings in Seoul. She was unendingly grateful that she'd picked a building that was nearby when trying to find a location to give Donghae. Her other thought was the park behind their dorm, but that would have gotten her found out in a few minutes.

Somehow, she managed to make it up to the top floor, find a seat by the window, put her headphones in her ears and look like she'd been sitting there for hours before Donghae stepped out of the elevator. She couldn't stop a bright smile from spreading across her face when she saw him. He returned the grin and was sitting by her at the window within a few seconds.

"What song are you listening too?" he asked.

"Um, Dara's solo," Yuri replied, checking the screen to make sure.

"Have you eaten yet, you seem like you very well could have forgotten," Donghae said, putting a hand to Jay's forehead to see if he had a fever.

Yuri brushed his hand away. "I'm not sick, I'm just distracted. I had dinner before coming here," she said.

"Why are you distracted?"

"Have _you_ eaten?"

"You've been wondering all day if I've eaten?"

Yuri shook her head and swatted at Donghae. "No you idiot, I meant since you asked you must be hungry, right?"

"Oh, little mind-reader we have here," Donghae replied. "Really, I'm good. I've been snacking all day."

"On what?"

Genuinely unable to recall exactly what he had been eating all day, he said, "This and that, just what we have at home."

"That is not healthy," Yuri said decisively. Pulling her headphones out of her ears entirely, she shoved them in a pocket and marched off.

Donghae followed in bewilderment. "Where are you going?"

"To get you some decent food!"

The best thing about living in the city, especially one like Seoul, was that there was always food to be had. Some of the best came from street markets like the one Yuri had wandered through with the girls of QuaszauR earlier that day, and many of these markets were open late into the night. It was fairly early yet though, so the street was crowded as she led Donghae through. There were nets of white Christmas tree lights hanging overhead to light the street up. It was just enough to cast a pretty glow without being so much that Yuri was too afraid of the undisguised Donghae being recognized.

Yuri dragged him through the market for an hour. Buying handfuls of a million different kinds of fruit and vegetables at nearly every stall and snacking on them as they made their way to the next spot with a tasty treat, both Donghae and Yuri got in their week's worth of healthy foods. For Donghae, it was the healthiest he'd eaten since joining JYG.

"You've had six and a half _years_ of horrible habits?" Yuri asked in disbelief. "How come you're not dead, or look like Mickey Z?"

"With all the work I do? Do you know how many _calories_ go into training? I don't think I could end up like Mickey Z if I _tried_," Donghae said. "And as for living: I don't starve myself, I just eat what's around to be eaten. Kihun usually keeps the flow of good food pretty constant."

Yuri laughed. "If not for that guy you'd all die!"

"What about you? You're one of us too," Donghae pointed out as he tossed a grape into Yuri's mouth.

Chewing, she replied, "My sister has started sending me text messages every two hours to remind me to eat well."

"Is that why you lost your phone?"

"I set it down somewhere because I couldn't take it anymore . . ." Yuri said, giving Donghae a strawberry. "Though, the next time she's in Korea she's vowed to strap it to my wrist."

It took Donghae a few seconds to smush the strawberry up enough to ask, "And when would that be?"

"I don't know," Yuri said honestly. It would depend on what SooHyun could make happen in terms of days off, because when the real Jay got back Yuri would have to go away for a while. And even if another day off with the girls _did_ come up before then Donghae wouldn't be able to join them.

Not prying was always the better option, but Donghae couldn't stop himself from asking, "Does it have something to do with the mysterious person in the hospital? I know you've been worried for a while."

Yuri had known he'd heard part of at least one of her conversations with Jay, but she wasn't sure how much _else_ he knew about the situation and her stomach dropped as the weight of worry settled into it. "Yeah, kinda," she said slowly, watching him carefully for his reaction.

He just kept strolling along popping one of the grapes in his hand into his mouth as he nodded. "You two seem pretty close to this person," Donghae mentioned. It was the closest he'd come to prying into the private affairs of the person he was worried about in years, but he just couldn't make any sense of the situation and he didn't think he'd be of much help if he was left in the dark forever.

Yuri kept her lips sealed.

The seconds ticked by slowly as she panicked and Donghae mulled over his next move. Jay had shut down, like he always did when _anyone_ asked something about his personal life. Donghae should have expected it; of all the members of QuaszauR, Jay had always been the one most difficult to console like this. The others would eventually confess their worries before the weight of carrying whatever it was crushed them. Jay had never once done that.

Of course, Jay had never once been under Donghae's acute care either. For the most part, Jay could take care of himself. Before he'd always been laughing and joking with Jinki and Chansung, so Donghae had believed he was coping with everything perfectly well. But since his debut . . . he'd closed off from the group a lot, and he'd lost so much of what his training should have carved into his bones. It really seemed that Jay was running on a hopeless dream and raw talent right now, rather than sheer effort and the brutal drillings of JYG training.

Donghae hadn't been too concerned about it in the beginning, but now he was willing to admit that he was well and truly worried.

"You don't _have _to tell me what's going on," he forced himself to say. "Just don't lie to me and gloss things over like they're fine, okay?"

Yuri kept her lips air-locked, refusing to look even in Donghae's general direction. She felt horribly guilty for not explaining the whole situation outright, but it just didn't feel like telling him _now_ would do anyone good.

The situation was salvaged when Donghae's phone rang.

"Ah, YoungJae, what is it?" he asked.

The leader was shuffling papers as he replied, "We apparently start filming for our variety shows tomorrow. Action has four episodes of _Sunny Dae_, and you have to be on set by eight. Yuna's helping SooHyun with the girls' thing; it's in complete chaos right now. And I'm busy with Mellow so you're pretty much gonna be on your own." He added inspiringly, "_Don't screw this up_."

"You have so much faith in me," Donghae commented.

"You know how JongHyun is," YoungJae countered. "He may be leader, but he's far too nice about it. He'll let you do whatever you want and then do whatever it takes to pick up the slack himself."

"I know, don't worry. I'll make sure we all behave." He hung up and called out to get Jay's attention which had wandered to a stand selling pineapples.

Yuri hadn't known they sold fresh pineapples in Korea . . . Her attention though was easily captured by Donghae.

"Come on, we've been called back. We have filming in the morning."

If it were possible, Yuri's stomach sank even further at the thought. "Filming? Again? What for?"

"Do you remember _anything_ we were supposed to do this week?" Donghae said, ruffling Jay's hair. He was doing that a lot he noticed, but Jay's hair really lent itself well to the action. "The variety shows? We're promoting the subgroups by having them make appearances on popular television shows, remember?"

Yuri's face reflected her horror at the thought of another round of filming like what they had gone through for the music video. Donghae threw a grape perfectly into her gaping mouth. The sudden taste woke her up enough to hear as Donghae said, "Relax. It's fun; and you've done variety shows before. One recording, no retakes unless something really bad happens, and literally, we play games all day. No stress."

Yuri's expression only changed fractionally. Having experience under your belt only worked if it was _your_ belt. That Jay had done this before only made it harder on Yuri to do well, she needed to maintain her cover.

"Come, on," Donghae said grabbing Jay's arm and dragging him back towards the 63 Building. "We'll make a lap of the block first if you're that stressed out about it."

Yuri pulled her arm free. "You came on the bike?"

"Of course, I only use YeongSaeng's car when I'm with MinYeon."

Yuri supposed she shouldn't have been surprised. There was no way he would ever get the prissy Miss MinYeon onto the beast, and for his girlfriend, of course he would make allowances. Still, for some reason she hadn't been expecting it, and hearing it felt like a punch in the stomach.

When Donghae tossed the helmet to her, she still felt a bit queasy. That feeling however was probably more related to having to get on the motorcycle again rather than crush-related jealousy. With equal parts shyness and fear suppressing her voice, Yuri squeaked, "Uh, Donghae-hyungnim? Can I ride in front again?"

He grinned, scooting backwards as he teased, "Scaredy cat."

Blushing furiously, Yuri turned away, even though her face was under the protection of her helmet's dark visor. Donghae grabbed her hand and pulled her closer. "Get on. I bet JongHyun's starting a movie as we speak."

"Movie?"

As Yuri clambered on in front of him, Donghae replied, "Whenever we have a full schedule ahead of us, where we won't get to see everyone for a while, he plays a movie on the last night we do have together. Now, hang on."

Donghae slid his arms around Yuri and sent the bike flying over the tarmac. Yuri wasn't half as terrified as she'd been the first time, or the second. In fact it was more exhilarating than anything, and only partly due to Donghae's close contact.


	9. A Little More Meddling

The popstar had been right, when Yuri and Donghae arrived in the dorm, the lights were down and the entire band was gathered around the television. The movie was halfway over by the time they joined the group, but adjustments were quickly made to allow them to sit comfortably. Yuri had never seen the movie before, but between Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi she was able to grasp the basics of the plot.

When the movie finished up, YoungJae threatened them with a vague, "You'd better be right on time wherever you need to be tomorrow." He made sure each of them nodded in response to his command and then headed off to bed. The rest of the band excluding YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, Donghae, Dara, and Yuri followed soon after him.

The five were planning on restarting the movie, to let Yuri see it from the beginning. Both KyuJeon and Dara asserted that this was necessary, hearing about the beginning, and _seeing_ it were entirely different things. Donghae relented, but he pointed accusingly at Yuri, saying, "But first you have to take a shower! Dara, how many shops did you manage to drag him through? The perfume smell is _never _going to come out of those clothes."

He and Dara began bickering about how it wasn't that bad as Donghae pushed Yuri off. She grabbed her pajamas as Dara announced that she was going to bed and then scrambled though her shower. She wasn't sure if KyuJeon was planning on watching the _whole_ movie again or if they were just going to watch up to the part where Donghae and she had joined in. Either way, it would take a while and they had to get up in the morning.

Yuri didn't dry her hair off very well, choosing to wrap a towel around her shoulders and head out dripping instead. She wanted to get the movie going as quickly as possible because she hated the thought of the others just waiting for her. She helped KyuJeon fiddle with the player, getting the DVD to restart from the beginning. The two met fairly easily with success and jumped on the couch to watch the previews as Donghae and YeongSaeng whipped up another batch of popcorn.

"How's MinYeon reacting?" YeongSaeng asked as he leaned over the breakfast bar from inside the kitchen.

Sitting on the opposite side of the counter from him but facing the same direction, Donghae responded, "Reacting to what?"

Jerking his chin in the direction of KyuJeon and Jay, who were involved in a round of rock paper scissors to decide who would get to hold the remote, YeongSaeng clarified, "To this thing you've got going on with Jay."

"What thing?" Donghae asked, genuinely puzzled.

YeongSaeng arched his eyebrow pointedly. "Exactly how much do you have to do for him before you finally realize that you're taking better care of him than you are of yourself?"

Donghae shrugged. "It's not like this kind of thing is news for me. I was worse with SeungMi; do you have any idea how many teddy bears I had to buy before I could get that girl to smile?"

"Did you ever let her on your precious motorcycle? Have you even let any of us touch it before?" YeongSaeng said, counting off on his fingers the times Jay'd been granted the privilege as he reminded, "There was the first day of the music video filming; and the ride home, and you stopped somewhere, so I'm counting that as two; and then there's today . . . Whereas if any of _us_ even looks at it we have to get an earful from you about how it's like your childhood dog or something."

"It's my bike, I don't like you guys messing with it," Donghae responded.

"And _he's_ not one of us meddlesome bandmates?"

Donghae laughed. "Jay's terrified of the thing. He won't go within twenty feet of it if I'm not right there with him. I don't have to worry about him messing it up."

"Uh-huh," YeongSaeng said with a look that spoke volumes. "I wasn't going to mention the hat thing . . . or the coffee and breakfast thing . . . or the staying up late waiting thing . . . or the thing about how you spend more time with each other than you do with your girlfriends . . . but I will if you make me."

Donghae still just brushed him off. "It's nothing. If anything, it's just like how the others see you and KyuJeon."

"That is a supreme failure of an example to prove your point," YeongSaeng said with a grin. "And you know it." He turned away from his best friend as he spoke, prompted by the sound of the beep, to pull the now hugely inflated bag of popcorn out of the microwave.

"If you never tell him anything, nothing will happen, and my point stands," Donghae retorted, leaning over the counter and snatching the bag out of YeongSaeng's hands.

He grabbed a handful of the warm kernels and dumped it into his mouth as he crossed to the common room's little television alcove. Coming up behind Jay, Donghae dropped the bag into his lap. Jay caught it with an excited yelp, pleased that he'd gotten _something_ though he'd lost the duel for the remote.

He and KyuJeon were seated in the dead center of the couch, jostling each other for the best position as they nabbed some popcorn. YeongSaeng took the arm seat on KyuJeon's side and looked expectantly at Donghae as the feature film began to roll. Donghae ignored him and snatched the towel off of Jay's shoulders. "You're supposed to dry off with these," he said, adding, "They don't work well as fashion statements." He ran it roughly over Jay's head, making him fight both KyuJeon and Donghae to see the movie they had suggested he watch. YeongSaeng just watched in open amusement.

Eventually, Donghae was satisfied that Jay's hair wouldn't make him catch a cold during the two hours he would be staying up to finish the movie and took his seat at the couch's other arm. They went all the way through the movie again with no mishap other than a spat of popcorn throwing that spontaneously broke out during the scene where the main characters confessed their feelings to each other. It was a touching scene that no one paid any attention to as they fired off whatever ammo they had in their hands and furiously reached for more. No one was quite sure who started it, and in much the same mysterious way, it ended suddenly and wasn't repeated as the movie rolled on.

Then off to bed it was with an early morning wake up call.

It wasn't too bad; Yuri was able to wake up at her regular time without any problems. Donghae met her in the café and the pair grabbed enough coffee to wake the other members of Action up before seven. JongHyun and Chansung woke up easily and were perfectly awake with the administration of caffeine to their systems. YeongSaeng on the other hand, was resistant to the prodding of the others.

Since KyuJeon didn't need to wake up until noon, he'd stayed up extra late with YeongSaeng. This wasn't an insurmountable problem, but it meant that no one was willing to let YeongSaeng drive. JongHyun took the role, mentioning that his car had enough room for the five of them. Chansung was more than willing to let him drive, but he brought up that room for five was hardly necessary as Donghae would be on his bike.

"And Jay'll be with him," YeongSaeng added with a smirk.

Donghae ignored his friend and slung an arm around Jay's shoulders as the group made their way out to the garage. "You never know, he could be fed up with the thing. So, Jay, wanna ride with them? Or on the bike?"

"The bike's good," Yuri replied, ducking her head a bit. She wasn't sure who was being teased here, as YeongSaeng's smirk seemed to be directed at Donghae, though his was clearly directed at her. The motorcycle was still terrifying to her, but her crush on Donghae was getting worse, and it was now strong enough to over-ride the fear for the most part.

Yuri had to ride on the back of the motorcycle this time, because driving with her in front was doable, but not particularly easy. In the traffic of rush hour, it was safest to let Donghae have all the control he could get over the behemoth.

He'd been right though, the variety show was fun. It was literally a full day of games. One of them was a bit nerve wracking, the punishment for losing a round of 'Catch the Rat' being that one of the other band members got to make a cut in the loser's T-shirt. Donghae's abs were exposed, JongHyun's back, YeongSaeng's shoulder and collarbone; and Chansung lost both of his sleeves and the entire lower half of his T-shirt because he was really bad at the game. Yuri managed to scrape through unscathed by sheer will of concentration that the MC, Kim DaeSung, was massively impressed with.

Overall though, the set-time during the week of shooting was nothing but laughs. Between the games were mini games that went like questions and answer sessions, but if one of the other members thought you were lying they would press a button and water would shoot out of the floor at you. There were also a few, slightly more serious question and answer rounds, but only one a day. They shot four episodes, and two mini episodes, of the show _Sunny Dae_. Each episode took a full day to film, but the mini ones only took half the day.

Their first half day off came after two full days of shooting. They were released into the pretty Seoul sunlight at just after two, which unfortunately didn't coincide with any of the other groups' allotted free time. They managed however by playing in street fountains that wouldn't fit more than the five of them comfortably. Chansung managed to find a vendor that sold containers of bubbles, which amused them for the hours until the girls got out of their filming session.

Though the band's different factions certainly saw less of each other during the week spent in filming the variety shows, it wasn't like they _never_ saw each other. Though they had feared there would be no contact between subgroups, they all still slept in the same dorm, regardless of how late some got in. While they had been working to promote some of their solo stuff, certain members had gone to Japan or China for a full month of not seeing the others. This was infinitely preferable.

The girls came home and went for a mid-evening stroll of the park behind the dorms with the guys of Action. YeongSaeng and Donghae spent the walk teaching Jay how to be a better boyfriend and criticizing how he was doing as they flirted with Dara. SeungMi and Jaebi were off in their own little world; a world that somehow involved ice cream, though Yuri was sure no vendor they had passed in the park had been selling any. JongHyun and SooHyun were talking about leaderly things that no one else was even remotely interested in, though MinJi tagged along regardless.

That left Chansung and JiEun to their own devices. Yuri couldn't help but notice how attentive Action's lead singer was to Sweet's lead dancer, especially as his actions were occasionally cited by YeongSaeng or Donghae to show Jay what he was doing wrong. And MinJi, Yuri noticed, was keeping well out of their way. She even joined up with the group critiquing Jay on his boyfriend behavior, though she knew perfectly well that Yuri didn't actually need any advice on the subject.

Because of this, MinJi was the first person Yuri went to when they went inside for the night. MinJi decided that vanilla yogurt made for a good before bed snack and Yuri joined her in the kitchen as she was mixing in some chocolate chips. It actually sounded pretty tasty, so Yuri whipped up her own batch as she broached the subject.

She didn't tiptoe around the issue at all. "What's with Chansung and JiEun?"  
"What?" MinJi asked though a mouthful of yogurt.

Yuri pressed, "You were awfully keen to stay out of their way earlier."

"Oh, that," MinJi squeaked, blushing a bit. "Yeah . . . they're sort of together, but not really. It's kind of like understood that they're a couple, but no one's allowed to talk about it because it's technically not official."

"Like Jaebi and SeungMi?"

"Sorta, but not really," MinJi replied looking out into the common room where SooHyun, SeungMi, and JiEun were on the couch watching as Dara helped DongHae cheat at some card game the guys had started on the floor.

"What do you mean 'not really'?" Yuri asked, her interest officially piqued.

MinJi took her time in answering. She wanted to accurately relay the nature of the relationship without sparking another matchmaking incident. "They've been like that for years, but it's not so much a shy, crushy, _like - _like kind of thing, as a we've-been-friends-forever thing that's sorta spiraled away. They don't actually know how much they really like each other."

"Ah," Yuri said nodding. After pouring rather than spooning a large portion of her wonderfully tasty snack into her mouth Yuri mumbled in a questioning voice, "So what they need isn't so much a shock or even a push, they need a nudge."

"Please don't say you have an idea," MinJi whimpered.

Yuri scraped out the last of her yogurt and popped the spoon into her mouth, her lips pressed together in a smug smile. She looked at MinJi in silence that spoke volumes of what MinJi did not want to hear.

"You guys have to wake up early tomorrow, right?"

"Maybe," MinJi said slowly.

"That's all I needed," Yuri said sweetly. She threw her yogurt cup away and skipped off to JiEun's room. Her plan was actually made all the easier for her by the person who would be subjected to it. JiEun stored all of her shoes on the shelves at the top of her closets, places she couldn't possibly reach without the aid of a stepstool which was placed conveniently in the center of each closet.

Without touching anything, Yuri slipped back outside and then into her own room. After grabbing her pajamas she took a quick shower and headed over to watch the card game. She was watched closely by MinJi, SeungMi, JiEun, and SooHyun. Dara sidled up to her and slipped an arm around her waist saying. "You're scheming, aren't you?"

With Donghae watching to make sure Yuri performed the appropriate reaction, Yuri couldn't push Dara away. Instead she slung an arm around Dara's shoulders, whispering in her ear, "Maybe . . . Don't worry, it's nothing. In fact if something actually happens between those two because of this, I'll be very surprised."

"Because of what?"

"You'll see," Yuri said, releasing her with a wink that Donghae highly approved of.

Yuri kicked YeongSaeng and JongHyun aside so that she could join the circle. She was directly across from Donghae as they dealt her in. The five girls watched her nervously the entire time, but eventually they had to go to bed, as they needed to get up really early in the morning.

Once they were safely away, Yuri asked, "Hey Chansung, what kind of coffee do you want tomorrow? It's so annoying trying to figure out what you want because you can't wake up and get it yourself!"

"What's this 'can't wake up' thing? I simply choose to stay in bed and let you and Donghae fetch me caffeine," Chansung countered.

"Really? Prove it!"

"How?"

Yuri smirked. "Get up before me, and bring me an iced mocha."

Chansung considered the proposition carefully for a minute. "When do you get up?"

"Five."

He balked. "That's almost as early as the girls have to get up!"

"So?" Seeing him about to refuse, Yuri added, "Beat me to caffeine this once and I swear I'll never complain about your sleeping habits again." This was enough to tempt him, but not quite enough to get him to take the deal. "If you don't beat me I'm gonna complain everyday and never get you coffee again, and I won't let Donghae get you any either."

"Fine, I'll get your stupid mocha," Chansung relented.

Playing her last card and successfully ending the game, Yuri said, "I'm looking forward to it. Anyone up for another round?"

Chansung was out. He made his way to his room grumbling about how he had to get up so early for such a stupid reason. JongHyun was out too, but he went to bed because he usually turned in earlier than most of the others.

That left YeongSaeng to shuffle, Donghae to lose every round, and Yuri to win. Overall, it was a very predictable bought of card gaming, but it was still fun. When the appeal of card game was beginning to wane Yuri decided to make hot chocolate. "Do you guys want some?"

When they nodded she headed off to the kitchen. Pulling three mugs out of the cabinet and putting just enough water on to heat up, Yuri mixed a bit of coffee creamer into the cups after she dumped in the packets of powder. Premixing with cream always made the mixture taste better. The wait for the water to heat up wasn't too long, but it was still boring, and Yuri jumped gratefully into action when the timer dinged.

The fruits of her patience nearly tumbled to the kitchen floor when she turned around to meet Donghae, bent down to stare her in the face with an adorable smirk. "You're scheming," he said as he watched Jay fight to keep the three mugs perfectly level as he reeled from Donghae's sudden nearness.

"What are you talking about?"

"That thing with Chansung." YeongSaeng appeared on Yuri's other side and she again had to fight gravity to keep the hot chocolate inside the mugs. "You're perfectly fine ordering coffee for him, and he really doesn't care what you get him. And you know all of this."

Yuri grinned at him. "Yes, I am scheming, to get him out of bed more than ten minutes before filming starts."

"There is definitely more going on here," Donghae said, reaching around her to grab one of the hot chocolate mugs.

"What makes you say that?" Yuri retorted, handing YeongSaeng his mug.

As Yuri sipped at the beverage left in her hand, YeongSaeng asked, "Why are you up so late?"

"Why are _you_ up so late?" she countered.

With a shrug, YeongSaeng replied, "No reason."

"Other than that you're waiting for KyuJeon to get home," Yuri mentioned.

"Am I?"

Yuri nodded. "You like him," she said slowly, wondering how far she ought to push this. KyuJeon had expressly said he didn't want her to tell YeongSaeng of his feelings, but this wasn't about KyuJeon at the moment. And Yuri was curious . . . _and_ it was successfully distracting the boys from her plot with Chansung.

Luckily, YeongSaeng didn't get mad at her for figuring it out. Actually, he was quite impressed; Jay hadn't seemed the type for close observations or deductions. But he wasn't willing to admit everything just yet. "And how do you figure that?"

"It's pretty obvious," Yuri said with a shrug.

Donghae laughed. "Lookie here, folks. He's not as dumb as he looks!"

"Hey!" Yuri protested swatting at him.

He fended off her playful strikes with his hot chocolate mug, saying, "I told you that people were going to start figuring things out if you weren't careful."

"Even you would never have guessed that it'd be Jay," YeongSaeng countered.

"I take it that you're not gonna try the whole deny everything route," Yuri commented.

"What good would that do me?"

Donghae added, "Jaebi and SeungMi took that path, and just look at what you did to them! I don't think anyone's foolish enough to try that with you again."

"Hey, they ended up happily together," Yuri protested.

"KyuJeon's not like that, like either of them, he wouldn't react in the same way," YeongSaeng said softly.

Yuri groaned. "Has it ever occurred to _anyone_ that the reason I did what I did with them was specifically _because_ they would act that way? Or that I did it with _them_ because only they would act that way? Everyone's different, which means that everyone falls in love differently, and everyone has to be pushed to admit it differently."

Donghae grinned in a particularly mischievous manner that made Yuri smile too. "Got it, so what's the plan this time?"

"And what does Chansung have to do with it?"

"Chansung has nothing to do with anything related to you," Yuri said definitively.

"JiEun," Donghae caught on. "You're planning to set them up somehow, aren't you?"

Yuri gave him a sideways glance. "It took you this long to figure that much out?"

YeongSaeng shook his head saying, "Will you at least give us a little bit of a heads up? I don't want to have to get mad at you again for no reason."

Yuri drained the last of the hot chocolate from the mug in her hand in one huge, straining gulp. Placing it in the sink, she said simply, "If you want to watch the show you'd better get up early."

She went to her room and sat in the dark for an hour as she waited for Donghae and YeongSaeng to go to bed. Once she was sure they were at least in their rooms for the night, she slipped out and into JiEun's room, the closets, more specifically. She pilfered the step stools from each of them and slipped out after making sure that the forward thinking young woman hadn't already taken down a pair in preparation for her early morning. Then just for good measure, she slipped into the rooms of the rest of QuaszauR Sweet, stealing any stepstool she could find. The fruits of her late-night labor made their way under the bed of YoungJae, who was thankfully quite the heavy sleeper as his door creaked despite Yuri's efforts to keep it quiet.

Donghae, who was watching the proceedings from the perfect vantage point that was just inside his bedroom door, couldn't for the life of him figure out Jay's plan. Wondering seriously if he should put a stop to the plot, Donghae saw Jay slip back into his own room, appearing to be ready to stay there for the rest of the night. He did not want another incident, as much for Jay's sake as for his own. Regardless of how things had turned out in the end, everyone had dealt with a pretty heavy emotional blow, and Jay had faced the back lash of all of it.

It would probably be best to stop this before it got out of control, but Donghae wanted to wait a bit longer. Jay had after all gotten Jaebi and SeungMi to be happily together, and now they were so significantly relaxed that the stress they had been feeling leading up to the catharsis was even more obvious. Jay's actions had been good for them in the long run, so just maybe the same would hold true for Chansung and JiEun.

However, Donghae wasn't planning on just letting Jay run this scheme without any kind of supervision. He went to bed only after setting his alarm to wake him close to the ridiculously early hour the girls were getting up at. One night with hardly any sleep wouldn't be too bad; while they were promoting, such was the daily routine and Donghae had long gotten used to it.

Of course, being used to suffering through the early mornings didn't mean he liked them. He woke bleary eyed and slightly less than coordinated a mere four hours after having finally turned in. On a normal day he would have made the quick walk over to the coffee house to get some caffeine into his bloodstream, but he didn't want to interfere in Jay's little charade. Crashing down heavily at the breakfast bar, he watched though sleepy eyes as the girls rushed back and forth in various stages of ready.

"You're up early, considering that you don't have to be anywhere for hours," SooHyun mentioned, sitting down beside him as she began to unwind some curlers from her hair.

"Aren't the stylists supposed to be the ones that mess with your hair?" Donghae said, choosing to ignore the implied question rather than address the issue she was trying to get at.

The leader waved his confusion away. "We aren't on a variety show that's filmed in a studio, we go places like day cares and hospitals and other places that would be inconvenienced by an army of hair and make-up artists. _We_ have to wake up early enough to do it ourselves. _You_ have the luxury of sleeping in. And yet here you are."

"I was wondering why you girls had to wake up so early!" Donghae replied, stifling a yawn, "I wanted to watch the show."

SooHyun contemplated trying again for the subtle approach, but she decided that she didn't have time for that. "This is about Jay, isn't it? What's his plan this time? You know, JiEun was tossing and turning all night with worry. I used half a tube of concealer covering up the dark circles under her eyes!"

"I've heard that surprises work better when less people know about them," Donghae commented. "But it seems like the only person who doesn't know is Chansung."

"Sorta, I mean we know that something's up, but even we don't really _know_ about the surprise," YeongSaeng jumped in. He leaned over the breakfast bar from the kitchen side, practically laying on the countertop so that his shoulders came right between those of his two bandmates as he fought the urge to close his eyes and go back to sleep where he stooped.

SooHyun nodded. "I think the only leg up we've got on this one is that we know what Jay's capable of," she admitted with worry, her thoughts clearly where everyone else's were, on his stunt with Jaebi and SeungMi.

"He won't do something that dramatic again," Donghae said with certainty. "He doesn't want us to get mad at him again more than we don't want to get mad."

"Let's hope so," SooHyun said quietly as Jay wandered into the common room wearing a sleepy expression and a dingy sweatshirt four sizes too large for him.

Even as the situation they were facing was grave, Donghae found himself unable to resist the smile tugging at his lips as Jay rubbed at his head with a hand encased in the sweatshirt's oversized sleeve. The young singer mustered a smile when he found SooHyun, YeongSaeng, and Donghae sitting at the breakfast bar. The leader got up as he walked over, saying to her sleepy companions, "I have to finish getting ready; try not to break anything." Even in their tired state, the boys didn't miss her meaning.

Jay took the leader's newly vacant seat, and sleepily propped himself up on the breakfast bar looking towards the door. "Has Chansung left yet?"

"He wasn't in his room when I checked," YeongSaeng mentioned, his grin spreading when Donghae tried fruitlessly to get the collar of Jay's sweatshirt to sit on his shoulder instead of hanging halfway down his arm. Underneath the dark grey of the sweatshirt, paler grey material of some sort of T-Shirt was exposed, along with the even paler color of the skin wrapped around Jay's strikingly delicate collarbones.

Donghae quickly gave up trying to get the sweatshirt to sit properly, seeing as the enormous sweatshirt could easily fall off both shoulders if it felt like it, and settled for combing out the worst of the knots in Jay's hair with his fingers as he said, "You've got us all so excited about this little scheme, even YeongSaeng's up early."

"And still without caffeine, I might mention," YeongSaeng grumbled.

"Not to worry, I've got your usual, right here," Chansung said with a chipper grin as he waltzed in. He not only had the iced caramel latte that YeongSaeng had grown attached to recently, but also the mochas Donghae and Jay favored. _And_ he'd picked up some caffeine for the girls too. Sipping triumphantly on his frappechino, Chansung passed the rest of the drinks out; leaving JongHyun's icy treat on the counter, knowing he'd be up soon enough.

He saved Jay's mocha for last, placing it in the sleepy singer's hands with a smug smile. Jay took the hint, saying, "I bow down before your morning managing abilities."

Chansung was about to reply when a frustrated JiEun stormed into the common room, towing a very confused Jinki by the ear behind her. "SooHyun-unnie! He won't tell me where he hid them! They aren't under his bed like last time!"

"Calm down," SooHyun soothed, as she tried to wrestle Dara's hair into what she considered an acceptable up-do. "We don't have to leave for another half hour and it only takes you a minute to get your shoes on. I can help you in just a bit, but I have to finish Dara's hair first. You're ready to go otherwise aren't you?"

JiEun nodded, reluctantly releasing her grip on Jinki's ear. Donghae arched an eyebrow, he'd forgotten the time Jinki had stolen all the step stools. By the looks of the amused, and definitely surprised, smile Jay was wearing, he hadn't intended to blame the vanishings on Jinki.

For his part, Jinki was still too asleep to really process any of what was happening and proceeded to stumble back to the relative safety of his room when JiEun released him.

Jay didn't let JiEun flounder for long. "What's wrong?"

Suspicious of Jay's motives for anything at this point, JiEun warily answered, "Jinki stole all the step stools again, and now I can't reach the shoes I need."

"I'll see if I can help," Jay said immediately sliding off his seat at the breakfast bar. JiEun gave him a suspicious glance, but he responded only with a cheerful smile so she led him towards her room.

When he was halfway down the hall, he turned back, calling, "Morning Master Hyungnim! You're tall, you should come too, I might not be able to reach the right ones."

It was a well played move, Donghae thought to himself as Chansung hurried to JiEun. Amid the teasing from Jay and the eagerness to help JiEun, there hadn't been any room in Chansung's unsuspecting mind for doubt of the younger boy's intentions to settle.

Yuri was thrilled that this was working so well, she'd been sure something would have gone wrong by now. Though, she would have to remember to make it up to Jinki later, she hadn't known the trickster had done something like this before.

Her next move was pretty easy. JiEun pointed out the shoes she wanted, Jay showed that he couldn't reach them, and Chansung stepped into the closet to replace him. It went without a hitch and Yuri slipped out of the small room just as Chansung wrapped his fingers around the desired box. A second later the pair inside the walk-in closet realized that the door had been closed, and that it was impossible to open.

Yuri sat with a smug smile, balanced on a chair that had been leaned under the handle at such an angle so as to successfully jam it closed while there was weight on it. The whole 'stick a chair under the handle to blockade the door and then just walk away' thing may have just been something seen in the realm of cartoons, but the physics of how to make it work for real was something Yuri had learned in her first year of University.

As Chansung struggled against her lightweight figure as it pressed a chair into the door and the friction of the carpeting, Yuri said in a tone of the most obviously fake concern, "Oh no, it seems the door has jammed. Whatever shall we do?"

Inside, the well-lit closet was large enough for Chansung and JiEun to lounge in complete comfort. This wasn't some ill-devised scheme to force them into an awkward situation. Rather, the hope was that knowing that _Jay_ had been the one to design the set-up, after having meddled in a similarly audacious way with Dara's photo-shoot, and Jaebi's relationship with SeungMi, that they would at least _begin_ to connect the dots.

JiEun, having already known that Yuri was plotting something, was already figuring it out. "Jay you idiot! It's not like that at all, now let us out!"

"I can't, the door is clearly stuck. This is a circumstance well beyond my control," Yuri replied, again way overly acted.

Chansung gave one last push against the door, one that very nearly toppled Yuri from her perch, but when it ultimately failed to wedge the door open, he gave up with a heavy sigh. "Why on earth would Jay do something like this?" He wondered loudly, "Doesn't he know you have somewhere to be soon?"

"Since when has Jay obeyed the status quo? All of his stunts have been completely off the wall!" JiEun mentioned, her voice giving away that she was much more stressed than the obvious situation warranted.

Chansung noticed the strain and was instantly more attentive. "Don't worry, he won't make you late, and SooHyun will have him scrubbing floors for a week for making you worry like this."

Outside, Yuri rolled her eyes. "Why doesn't it _ever_ occur to people that I do things for a reason? Hmmm? Things would be so much simpler if people realized that there's a point to everything." This statement got Chansung thinking, as Yuri had known it would. She hadn't really meant to push them like that, but it didn't seem like it would be too catastrophic. Still to prevent her from taking things any further she said, "I'm gonna go get some help for this door thing, I'll be back in a few minutes."

She waited a moment to see if Chansung would try the door again, knowing her resistance would be gone. When he didn't immediately jump to open the door, she slipped back into the common room where YeongSaeng, Dara, and Donghae were waiting for her. JongHyun had woken up too, though he was busy helping SooHyun finish up getting the other girls ready.

"What happened?" Dara asked immediately.

"Nothin'," Yuri said with a grin.

"Where are they?"

"Nowhere." She added with a glance at SooHyun, whose eyes were on the common room clock, "I'm gonna just go outside for a bit. If SooHyun starts freaking out about how late it's getting, you should probably go let JiEun out of the closet."

With that she walked off leaving her audience a bit dazed. As she slipped quietly out the door with her mocha in hand, she heard YeongSaeng say, "He locked them in the closet?"

Yuri wandered around outside, sticking to the small park in front of the dorms, rather than heading out to the one a block behind it. That one would distract her from the time and she refused to make everyone worry because she'd gotten lost again. While she was waiting for something to happen however, she pulled out her phone and began texting her brother.

His phone was still off and it was much too early to give his hospital room a call, but doing something was more fun, and less nerve wracking, than just waiting around. After a little while, a commotion at the building's doors caught her attention. Yuna was leading the girls out to the van they were taking for the day. JiEun was very bubbly, Yuri noticed. SooHyun spotted her across the little park and heaved a sigh. The leader was very frustrated with Yuri's actions, but she couldn't find a way to be mad at the girl and went back to helping Yuna get the girls of Sweet into the van.

Sticking her phone back into her pocket, Yuri stood, stretching as the van pulled out of the loop in front of the dorm building. She was about to head back up when she spotted Donghae walking towards her. "If you want to go up now, you do so at your own risk. Chansung's a bit . . . peeved."

Yuri sat back down.

Donghae laughed. "Don't worry, he's not really mad. You just surprised him, that's all. He's not sure yet if he likes this new spin on his relationship with JiEun."

"Does that mean . . . ?"

"They aren't officially together, if that's what you're asking," Donghae said. "Not yet, at least."

Yuri nodded, she hadn't expected revolutionary change. "JiEun looked awfully happy, though," she mentioned.

"Yeah, but JiEun isn't the one you're going to have to spend the rest of the day with," Donghae countered. "Have you eaten breakfast yet?"

Yuri actually had to think for a second before she remembered that she'd made Chansung get the coffee this morning and therefore hadn't gone to the café yet. Donghae didn't give his bandmate time to answer, heading off towards the parking garage and towing Jay by the arm behind him. "Do you have decent clothes on under this horrible sweatshirt?"

"Just a t-shirt," Yuri said, stumbling along as she was towed backwards by Donghae. "Where are we going?"

"We're getting breakfast," Donghae replied, grabbing Jay's helmet from the box beside the motorcycle. The machine had come with two sets of safety gear, but Donghae had never used the silver helmet before he'd started letting Jay ride with him so it had lived in the box it had come in. Now though, as he was using it more and more frequently, Donghae was thinking that he might just throw that box out and hang Jay's helmet from the handlebars with his.

His thoughts didn't distract him from Jay's voice as the younger popstar complained, "But we walked farther to _get_ to the stupid bike than we would have if we walked straight to the café!"

"We aren't going to the café; you need a better breakfast than that. It's the most important meal of the day, hasn't Yuri ever told you that?"

As Jay grumbled incoherently, Donghae fixed his helmet in place and then helped Jay with the straps on his. Then, pulling the helmet's dark visor down over his charge's face, he let Jay hop on in front of him, citing that traffic this early wouldn't be too bad. "So where _are_ we going?" Yuri asked, nervously settling herself on the seat.

"You'll see," Donghae said mysteriously. He didn't wait to see if Jay was going to reply and kicked the beast to life and roared out of the parking garage as his passenger clutched in panic at one of his arms. The overly long sleeves of Jay's hoodie were just long enough to whip against the top of his helmet in the wind, and just short enough to allow Donghae to see as he drove.

Yuri managed to get herself under control fairly quickly, sitting in front on the beast definitely made her feel much more secure than sitting behind Donghae. Even so, she kept one of her arms wrapped around Donghae's, knowing that she could get away with it. She was really crushing hard on him at this point, but allowing herself a little treat was the most she could do about it.

When Donghae brought the bike to a stop, Yuri looked around confused. They were parked in a neat little shopping district, with no restaurants to be seen. "What's this?" she asked, pulling off her helmet.

"I'm school friends with the woman who owns this store," Donghae said, leading Jay inside the ultra-chic clothing store. "HeeJin-sunbae!" he yelled when there was no one to meet them at the door.

In a moment or two a honey-blonde young woman in a flowy knit poncho waltzed into the main room of the store cupping a mug of tea in her hands. "What kind of idiot comes here so early? I don't have any appointments for at least two hours," HeeJin said looking them over. "Donghae, what _have_ you dragged in here?"

"Sunbae, this is Kim Jaebeom," Donghae explained. "He's not allowed in the dorm at the moment, and we have filming today, so I can't just let him wander around looking like this. And you were the first person that came to mind when I was thinking of who could help us out with the situation."

"Well, I'll see what I can do," HeeJin said, looking Yuri over closely as she sipped her tea. "Do you have a particular look you're going for?"

"Not really, we've just got an episode of _Sunny Dae_ coming up today, so I'll leave it up to you," Donghae said, passing custody of Jay over to his senior by literally pushing him across the floor towards her.

Yuri struggled to keep her balance as HeeJin told her, "Come with me, we'll get you all fixed up."

Donghae watched to make sure that Jay went with HeeJin before he stepped back into the entryway to make a few phone calls.

Staring over the racks of clothing, HeeJin waited until Donghae's phone had been pressed to his ear for a few moments before she turned with conspiratorial delight to the person her junior had hauled across town in the early hours of the morning. "Why exactly does my little Donghae think you're a boy?"

The question caught Yuri completely off guard. "Um . . . what?"

"I'm not surprised that you've managed to fool him, he's not exactly the quickest on the uptake, but why would you want to? A pretty girl like you should want to get his attention, you know?"

"That's . . . a long story," Yuri responded, remembering the excuse Dara hand used on Heo-ssi at the salon. It felt like ages ago.

HeeJin wasn't satisfied with that as an explanation, but she switched to a related topic rather than continuing to pursue the base of the story. "I see he's gotten a new motorcycle, did he bring you here on it?"

"Uh, yeah," Yuri mumbled.  
"Now _that's_ interesting," HeeJin murmured, glancing over the clothing racks at Donghae again. He was still absorbed in his phone call. Slowly, and keeping her eyes on Donghae, she said, "I have a sundress that would look absolutely gorgeous on you, but something tells me you'd rather go for the jeans and a jacket look. I think I have something for you to try."

HeeJin led a trek though the store, picking up an article of clothing every once in a while as she made her way to the dressing rooms in the back. "Try a few different combinations of these and come out wearing your favorite, I'll be with Donghae by the mirrors near where you came in, got it?"

Yuri nodded. As HeeJin turned to leave, she called quietly, "You aren't going to tell him, are you?"

"Of course not, love," HeeJin said with a nonchalant sip of her tea. "I won't tell him anything."

As Yuri gave a relieved smile, and headed into the dressing room where HeeJin had tossed her load of clothes, the older woman murmured, "But I might make _him _tell _me_ a few things."

Heading slowly over towards where Donghae was standing, she heard him say, "Yeah, I got it. Thanks for dealing with him, YeongSaeng. I'm sure he'll be fine by the time you head out for the studio. We'll see you in a few hours."

He hung up, but began dialing again right away. "Hi, this is Hwan Donghae. Yes, I'd like to make a reservation. Private room, sky-scape please. One of every breakfast food you have. We'll be there in twenty minutes."

This time when he hung up he slid his phone into his pocket and stepped back inside the store. His eyes met with HeeJin's curious stare and he gave a sideways grin as he walked over. "New clothes and a breakfast buffet? You're being awfully nice to this kid."

"Jay's my new SeungMi, my latest little project," Donghae explained. "I'm not sure how well I'm doing with it, though. He just seems to keep making more trouble for himself, and he still won't tell me anything."

"Ah, and you've decided to pull out all the stops? Is that why you let him ride your precious motorcycle?"

Donghae ran his fingers through his hair. "YeongSaeng was picking on me for that too. What is so special about my bike?"

"Donghae, I've been asking you that for years, and you _still_ haven't let me ride it," HeeJin replied dryly. "How long have you been letting Jay?"

"It's just more convenient this way," Donghae said with a shrug. "He keeps getting lost and it's faster to get him with the bike than with YeongSaeng's car."

"Why not just buy a leash? No one would put it past you and you know it," HeeJin said with a grin.

Donghae returned her smile. "That is an awfully tempting idea."

HeeJin was going to tease him a little more, but the girl he called Jay was making her way out to the main shop floor. She was wearing light-washed jeans and a white faded print t-shirt under a back vest and a white suit jacket; she was a presentable boy, albeit quite the skinny fellow.

"He needs a hat," Donghae said after a moment of consideration. "Do you have any fedoras lying around?"

HeeJin nodded. She headed into the backrooms of her shop as she called, "What is it with you and hats?"

"Grab a few necklaces while you're back there, too, will ya?"

An incoherent shout, presumably of compliance, drifted back to Donghae's ears. He ignored it as he tweaked the way Jay's new clothes were sitting on his slim frame, he was just so skinny. Yuri was glad for his help; she was wearing a _lot_ of fabric in order to hide her shape and arranging it all in a presentable manner was a tricky task to pull off alone.

A moment later, HeeJin returned with the hat Donghae had requested and an assortment of different necklaces. Yuri spotted one she liked immediately; a thin but durable silver chain connected to a locket in the shape of a gold heart with a silver padlock on it. Her eyes went wide at the sight of it sparkling in the sunlight pouring in from the floor-to-ceiling windows that lined the shop.

She wanted it.

She _really_ wanted it.

But it was far too girly for Jay's tastes, and therefore she couldn't ask for it.

Instead, she picked up another pretty and unique item. Three different chains, of varied type, gauge, and length, looped through a silver rhombus which, though no more than three inches across, had the intricate design of a fleur-de-lys standing out in silver against a milky-white backdrop. It was certainly pretty too, but it was much less girly.

Donghae liked her choice right away. Taking it from her hands and sliding it over her head, he said, "There we go, that looks much better. Kihun would approve."

He noticed however that Jay's eyes kept flitting back to the spread of necklaces HeeJin had brought over, particularly to a very sparkly locket. It wasn't HeeJin's best work, or her best choice for Jay; it was a fairly basic heart shaped design, very feminine, with crystals thrown in for no artistic purpose other than to induce random refractions of light at any angle it was held. Jay's eyes followed the sparkling light as if he had never seen anything like it before.

Picking it up, Donghae inspected it. It was certainly sparkly. And Jay was obviously utterly in love with it. If that didn't prove the singer was ADD, Donghae didn't know what did. "Well, why not?" he said, slipping the sliver chain over Jay's head.

"Actually, that one is part of a set," HeeJin said, lifting another off the spread. The silver chain on this one was slightly more robust, trailing down to connect to a silver key decorated with gold detailing. "If you look closely, the gold ribboning on this one matches the silver details on the heart. And the pattern in the gold on that one mirrors the silver etching on this one. They're a one of a kind pair, I made sure of it; so you can't take that one without taking them both."

Donghae gave a wry smile, taking a hold of the chain she was dangling before him. "Fine, you scam artist. But this one doesn't match what Jay's wearing."

"But it suits what you are," HeeJin mentioned. "And the silver's been specially mixed with a few secret ingredients, you could go swimming with those things on and they still won't tarnish. Oh, and we just got in some new flat-caps, if you're interested, none of my design but they're pretty nice. Take these with you if you're going, they're in the back."

"Making your patron do all the hard work?" he said ruefully with an acknowledging nod. Then Donghae looked to Jay. "I'll be right back, Sunbae probably won't bite, so don't worry." He took the necklace tray from HeeJin and headed deeper into the shop.

The moment he was gone, HeeJin questioned in an excited whisper, "What exactly did you do to make that boy so attuned to a girl's love of sparkles? He usually has trouble picking out something for MinYeon's birthday, even when she comes with him! But he picked up on your little favorite right away."

"What?"

"How'd you do it? I've been trying for _years_ to get him to learn how to take a hint!" HeeJin explained, not alleviating any of Yuri's confusion.

The store owner was about to go on, but just then Donghae popped back into the picture. The key necklace was hanging around his neck and on his head was perched a new plaid flat cap that honestly looked to both Yuri and HeeJin exactly like at least a dozen that he already had.

Waving his credit card in front of HeeJin's face he prompted, "We have reservations, remember."

"Right, wouldn't want to make you late for your little breakfast buffet," HeeJin said, taking the piece of plastic from him and walking over to a counter with a cash register. "Don't you have any real work to do today?"

Donghae slung his arm around Jay's shoulders saying, "Yeah, but thanks to _someone,_ we got up _way_ too early, _and_ got kicked out of the house. So we still have a few hours before filming starts."

Handing Donghae back his card, HeeJin asked, "I don't suppose you want a receipt, or a bag, or anything, do you? I'll send someone to your dorm with Jay's clothes later."

"Thanks Sunbae, we'll drop by again soon," Donghae said, steering Jay out of the shop.

"You'd better!" HeeJin called after the pair.

As she listened to the roar of the motorcycle starting up, she wondered if she'd ever get to properly meet this girl who had taken over her junior's focus so entirely. As it stood, she didn't even know the girl's real name. HeeJin felt like she owed the girl somehow, for getting Donghae to smile like he had when he'd chosen the heart necklace. It was such a rare expression for him to wear, that kind of genuine happiness, and HeeJin was supremely satisfied that he seemed so comfortable with experiencing it. Before he would force himself to be happy, but HeeJin had never once seen him wear such an easy smile; at least not since he'd debuted as a pop star. It was a very nice change.


	10. Of Presents and Kidnappings

As HeeJin was thinking over her long relationship with Donghae, the young man in question was currently in the process of hauling Jay through the lobby of one of the tallest sky scrapers in Seoul. It was several floors higher than the 63 Building, though that would always be the iconic 'tallest building'. It was much like how America's Empire State Building wasn't actually all that tall, though its reputation was known across the globe.

Yuri was just so easily distracted. She'd never been inside a building as nice as this one. Even the five star hotel she'd been staying at before this whole Jay-fiasco had gotten rolling wasn't half as nice. Donghae tried to walk straight through, without looking at anything, like this was an everyday experience for him. For Yuri though, it felt like a once in a lifetime sort of deal.

Finally, Donghae managed to drag his newest dongsaeng into the elevator, by physically hauling him along with an arm hooked around his remarkably slim waist. The windows around the vehicle looked out over the Seoul cityscape and Jay was soon completely enthralled with the view as the elevator began to rise higher and higher above the city streets. Donghae watched his awed expression with a small grin. If Jay thought this was impressive, Donghae was looking forward to seeing how he would react when he saw the view from the table he had reserved.

He was not disappointed.

Jay's expression was the happiest he had ever seen it, and that was an extremely gratifying sensation. Jay had his face pressed up against the glass as Donghae slid into the booth that looked out over the city and the waitresses politely bowed out as they finished with the final touches on the breakfast spread Donghae had ordered.

"This is _amazing_!" Yuri couldn't help but repeating herself constantly as she scanned the city far below. It was an absolutely spectacular view.

"You know if you sit over here you can look out the window and eat at the same time," Donghae mentioned, adding, "If you don't eat it soon it'll all get cold."

Moving slowly away from the window, Yuri slid behind the table to join Donghae. The display of food set out on the table was almost as impressive as the view beyond it. Yuri's mouth watered instantly when she spotted a stack of Belgian waffles with a swirl of whipped cream set on top. She hadn't had real waffles in a _very _long time. And just to make things even more amazing, there was real _butter_ sitting out on the table.

Donghae passed her the plate that had caught her attention as she asked, "How is this even possible?"

"There's more than one perk to being an idol," Donghae explained taking a plate of hotcakes for himself. Before he started eating though, he moved a bowl of fruit to sit beside Jay's plate of waffles. "I brought you here so you'd get a good breakfast remember, so don't just scoop up the whip cream off of everything."

Yuri scooped half of the whipped cream off of her waffles and popped it into her mouth, smiling though the fluff. The rest of it, she spooned into the bowl of fruit. Then she said, "You should follow your own advice, it's not normal to know how to take care of yourself and then blatantly refuse to."

"I'm not refusing to take care of myself, I'm just too busy trying to take care of you to bother with it all," Donghae replied, taking a spoonful of whipped cream covered fruit from the bowl by Jay and tipping it into his mouth.

Between the two of them, enough breakfast foods were consumed to feed an entire eastern European country. They hung out in the small room so high above Seoul for all the time they had to spare before they needed to head out for their variety show filming. Yuri was again in charge of hanging onto the hats as they sped across Seoul on the motorcycle.

Despite Donghae's calm assurances that Chansung would be perfectly fine with what had happened that morning by now, Yuri was very antsy as she followed him inside the studio. The hair and make-up artists fixed them up in a few short minutes and then the pair joined the rest of QuaszauR Action on stage. Yuri was practically hiding behind Donghae as the others noticed their entrance.

"Yah, Jay!" Chansung's voice sounded very angry to Yuri's ears.

Peeking out from behind her designated protector, she asked, "What's up?"

"That stunt you pulled this morning, why'd you do it?"

"Why do you think I did it?" Yuri countered.

Chansung was obviously still quite frustrated. "But JiEun and I . . . we don't—"

"Are you sure? If you really didn't have any feelings for her, would you be thinking half as hard about this?" Yuri asked. "I'm not saying you're in love with the girl, and I'm not going to make you ask her out. I'm just going to make you think about it a little, you have to take a stand here, decide what you _want_ it to be. You can leave things they way they are, if you really want to. But now you also have the option of taking a step forward, the direction you step in, that's up to you."

It was remarkably easy for Yuri to be bold while standing with Donghae between her and the person she was talking to. She saw YeongSaeng grin and wondered if he'd noticed that it was only Donghae that allowed her to talk to her elder like that.

Chansung was quiet the entire day of filming. The MC noticed and poked a little fun at it, but the rest of Action defended his sluggishness as recoil from Jay making him wake up at the crack of dawn. This successfully transferred the teasing attentions to the newest member and Yuri bore it with good humor, it was the least she could do seeing as it was her fault Chansung was frustrated.

At the end of the day, things hadn't gotten much better. Donghae took Yuri home on the motorcycle and she tried to stay out of Chansung's way most of the evening. The girls had gotten home much earlier, but they had thankfully gone on a little shopping trip right before Action had come in.

Yuri got ready for bed pretty early, not wanting to be around when the girls got back in case something happened and she got blamed for it. Before turning in for the night though, she said, "If you feel like taking a step towards her, I recommend flowers. JiEun strikes me as a lily kind of girl."

She headed off to her room, meeting with a surprise in the shape of YeongSaeng leaning outside her door. "I like that necklace, where'd you get it?" he said, jerking his chin at the chain Yuri was playing with. She hadn't taken it off since Donghae had put it over her head.

"You know, I've heard that KyuJeon likes sparkly things even more than I do," Yuri said pointedly. "Is that why you wanna know where you can get one like it?"

YeongSaeng shook his head at her comment. "You're not gonna let that go are you?"

"Nope, not in the foreseeable future, at any rate," Yuri responded.

"First Dara, then Jaebi and SeungMi, and now Chansung and JiEun . . . aren't you done yet? At this rate we'll all be paired up before the music video release."

Yuri grinned. "Doesn't everyone deserve a date to the party?"

"You should take better care of yours," YeongSaeng pointed out. "Or else she might start thinking you don't like her very much."

Yuri's smile broadened, thinking about how basically the only thing she'd talked to her brother about other than the immediate state of his condition had been Dara. "Don't worry about that, I'm sure we'll be together for a very long time. I like her more than any girl I've ever come across, Yuri's already planning our wedding."

"Really now?" YeongSaeng said, with his eyebrow arching curiously.

"Yep, she wants doves and everything," Yuri said, adding, "I'll see you tomorrow."

She headed into her room leaving YeongSaeng stumped at the door. He headed back out into the common room, his mind ticking away at the possibilities. Jay had certainly spoken with conviction about his regard for Dara, and she wasn't in the slightest concerned about how much time her boyfriend was spending with Donghae. In point of fact, she'd been caught encouraging it more than once.

YeongSaeng didn't get it.

As the night progressed, he watched Donghae chatting aimlessly with SooHyun, MinJi was mediating again because any chat those two had would invariably turn into a bought of bickering within ten minutes. Nothing seemed unusual in the least, save for the way Donghae seemed strangely attached to the necklace he was unconsciously playing with throughout the evening.

Chansung had long ago vanished and neither he nor JiEun came back in until after the other girls had gone to bed. When they did return, YeongSaeng, Donghae, and JongHyun noticed their entwined fingers, but with very good judgment guiding their decisions, not one of them commented on it.

JongHyun turned in not long after the newest QuaszauR couple. Donghae went to the kitchen to make tea for the pair that was still up for them to drink as they waited for Mellow's members to return home. "You don't have to stay up too, you know," YeongSaeng called to him from the couch.

"And what kind of person would I be if I left my best friend to wallow in his loneliness?" Donghae responded, bringing two steaming mugs over.

YeongSaeng took the mug Donghae offered him, asking, "That necklace, it's from HeeJin-sunbae's shop, right?"

"You should know, we were her juniors for years and she always brought _us_ her newest designs to review," Donghae said.

"What did she say about you and Jay?"

"Less than you," Donghae replied. "The bike thing seems like the biggest issue for everyone."

YeongSaeng laughed. "That because it's the most unusual thing, the most Jay-exclusive of anything you've done. Well, other than this necklace thing."

"I've never bought anyone else a necklace? So half of Kihun's collection just popped out of thin air?"

"You've never bought a pair before."

"I didn't buy a pair today, Sunbae scammed me into it," Donghae defended.

YeongSaeng just stared at his friend. "Sure, she did."

"You know how she gets." Then hearing a quiet commotion outside the door, Donghae added, "Your favorite little dongsaeng is home. I'm going to bed."

"If Jay was still up you'd watch a movie with us," YeongSaeng complained as Donghae headed to his room, tea still in hand.

Ignoring his friend, Donghae sat leaning up against the wall on his bed. He finished his tea as he listened to the quiet noises of the returning members of Mellow. YoungJae would be heading to bed in a few minutes, Donghae knew. KyuJeon would force YeongSaeng to bed in an hour or so, and then go to bed himself for lack of interest in staying up. Jaebi and Jinki would be up for who knew how long, and Kihun would probably stay up to babysit them into keeping quiet.

Feeling like he could easily stay up along with them, Donghae wondered if what YeongSaeng had said was true. If Jay had wanted to watch a movie with the ballad subgroup, would he have stayed out in the common room? Probably not, but he likely would have sent Jay to bed before turning in himself.

Regardless, he was currently in bed, and he was going to stay there. He finished his tea, and turned out the lights.

When he woke up, the girls of Sweet had already left for their filming, and Jay had already left for his breakfast. He showered lazily, trying to remember why he hadn't last night, and got ready for their last full day of filming for _Sunny Dae_. The key remained in place around his neck; regardless of the fact that he hadn't intended to buy it yesterday, it was actually a pretty fashionable trinket. HeeJin's designs were always fabulous.

Donghae went to look for Jay in his usual café haunt and was surprised to find that he wasn't there. He wasn't too worried though. Jay was easily distracted after all; he'd probably seen a puppy and wandered after it though the park. In fact Donghae wasn't the least bit concerned with Jay's whereabouts until he told the man behind the counter that if a kid of Jay's description came in he should be told that Action's coffee run had been taken care of.

"That kid's always here in the mornings," the owner said with a sort of rueful smile. "He was here already, just chatting away on that cell phone as usual. But about half an hour ago he was hauled off by a guy in a sweatshirt and sunglasses. I was sorta worried, but it seemed like they knew each other."

It took Donghae a long few seconds to process the man's explanation. When he had, the coffee in his hands was all but forgotten. If Dara's cell hadn't been on speed dial, he very well may have simply cast the caffeinated drinks aside. Unfortunately, _Dara_ answered Dara's cell phone. She was in the middle of filming and said she couldn't talk for very long, but Donghae wasn't interested in listening for more than a moment. "You should let Jay hang on to your cell; you know how he's lost his!" Donghae said angrily as he got back inside the dorm.

Dara mumbled a horribly confused response as Donghae hung up and threw the coffees, which miraculously stayed upright, onto the counter as he charged towards Jay's room. It was definitely empty, the bed was made, the light was off, but there was nothing in the way of a note. Checking the common room and the kitchen, Donghae found that there wasn't any indication of Jay having been around of any sort. Frustrated, he answered his phone sharply without checking the caller ID, "What?"

"Now, is that any way to talk to your best friend?"

"YeongSaeng?"

There was a laugh on the other end of the line. "The one and only."

"What do you want?" Donghae grumbled, peering down the hall to see YeongSaeng's closed door.

"I just thought you might be wondering where a cute little, easily kidnapped, singer had gotten off to," YeongSaeng said, the teasing grin unmistakable in his voice.

Donghae went to check his hunch, and found that YeongSaeng's room was indeed empty. "Where are you?"

"We're having fun without you, jealous?"

Gruffly, Donghae responded, "That doesn't answer my question."

"You're pouting right now, aren't you? Don't lie, I know you better than that," YeongSaeng said, enjoying the situation immensely.

"I'm not pouting," Donghae replied immediately. "I'm thinking about how small I can cut the pieces of you up into and still make them all perfect cubes. You just about gave me a heart attack! And Jay _is_ there with you, right?"

"Oh, so worried," YeongSaeng crooned. "Don't fret, your most precious dongsaeng is right here."

"You'd better not make him do anything stupid, or KyuJeon's getting a bottle of ice water down his back every chance I get from now till Christmas!"

YeongSaeng sobered a bit. "You wouldn't dare. You know how easily Kyu gets sick."

"And you know how easily Jay gets lost."

"So, you don't get to play the knight in shining armor this once. Deal with it. I'll have him at the studio in time for filming, don't worry."

"YeongSaeng!" Donghae shouted as the singer hung up on him. He slammed his fist down on the counter in an outpouring of frustration. What YeongSaeng had done was just plain mean.

"What's all the fuss about?" a sleepy Kihun asked, wandering on unsteady feet into the common room. "I haven't seen you this riled up since that reporter made SeungMi cry last year."

"Why are you up so early? You don't have filming for a _long_ while yet," Donghae said, his annoyance creeping into his statement.

"My room is right there. Do you really think I could sleep though all the noise you're making?"

This gave Donghae pause. He suddenly felt quite guilty. "Sorry."

"Are you going to tell me what happened like a normal person, or am I going to have to go all I'm-your-senior on you?"

"YeongSaeng kidnapped Jay."

Kihun laughed. Even through his not-quite-awake-yet observations, Donghae looked more like his best friend had kicked his puppy. "Whatever will you do with yourself? You get to spend an hour not looking after his every move. Enjoy the vacation, I'm sure he'll be back in your custody soon enough."

Donghae just grumbled, taking a hold of one of the coffees he'd brought for Action. After a second of thought, he passed the mocha that should have been Jay's to Kihun. "In case you feel like actually waking up," he said, stalking off to the couch.

Crashing down across the entire length of the elongated chair, Donghae kicked at the remote until the television came on. He proceeded to flip though the channels with the same method as he sipped on his mocha, waiting for a drama or a music show that looked interesting to pop up.

"Hey, I have a question for you," Kihun said, appearing behind Donghae's shoulder. "Have you gotten any work done on that song you were supposed to have finished two weeks ago?"

At Donghae's incoherent grumbles, Kihun went on to say, "JongHyun and YoungJae are starting to get really worried about it. Maybe you should focus on that instead of the trouble that Jay's gotten himself into this time."

"That is a fabulous suggestion," JongHyun commented, coming into the common room ready for the day. "You should follow that advice before YoungJae makes me kill you, he doesn't want it to be quick."

He left Donghae to his grumbling and made his way to the kitchen where an iced latte had his name on it. "Why is Donghae sulking?" he asked with a sigh once he and Kihun were out of easy earshot.

"Why do you think?"

"Jay?"

Kihun nodded as Chansung joined their little morning party. He snagged his usual frappechino, asking, "What's he done now?"

"Nothing really," Kihun explained. "YeongSaeng kidnapped him this morning."

"Did he really?" JongHyun asked, skeptical.

Shrugging, Kihun said, "He seemed really worried about it before he got on the phone with YeongSaeng. I think it's pretty legit."

"But what exactly would YeongSaeng want with Jay this early in the morning?"

Chansung responded, "I think he did it just to freak Donghae out; we should make sure he doesn't go after KyuJeon before we leave for the studio."

Actually, that it had been guaranteed to make his best friend flip out was only part of the reason YeongSaeng had ambushed Jay in the café as he ate breakfast. The other part of the reason was the locket around his neck. "You understand the apparent appeal of sparkly things better than I do," he explained as his zippy BMW jerked to a halt outside the same store Yuri had been dragged to the morning before.

When they went inside, HeeJin was waiting for them. "I was wondering who had made an appointment for so early," she said with a grin. "How have you been YeongSaeng? You don't come visit me nearly often enough."

"Sorry, Sunbae," YeongSaeng said shyly. "I guess the time gets away from me."

"And Jay, wasn't it? It's good to see you again so soon," HeeJin said, eyeing the very familiar chain hanging around the girl's neck. The designer wondered what YeongSaeng knew about the situation. Probably no more than Donghae, seeing as the two could practically read each other's minds. "What can I help you with?"

"I want a necklace for KyuJeon," YeongSaeng said with an assurance he hadn't had a moment earlier.

HeeJin smiled. "I can help with that. And Jay's here because he has good taste? I approve of your choice in wingmen. Follow me."

She led the pair into the back of her shop where a curved glass counter sectioned off a mini jeweler's from the rest of the stylish shop. At least a hundred kinds of necklaces were displayed, and Yuri's eyes were instantly combing over the delicate and intricate patterns of sparkling decorations. While she looked over everything on the shelf nearest to her, HeeJin teasingly asked YeongSaeng, "So are you looking for a set, or is this just going to be a let's-be-friends kind of present?"

YeongSaeng was spared from having to answer by Yuri's sudden exclamation of, "That one!"

The necklace she was indicating was one with a long thin chain that led to a pair of narrow dog tags. They each had a few crystals in them, but the plate silver had been brushed with some sort of hyper reflective coating that was so shiny the crystals almost seemed superfluous. Etched into the silver were words, one on each side of the tags, "Forever, Bright," and "Eternal, Light," two phrases that were just vague enough to have any meaning you wanted them to, and just specific enough to hint at the giver's intentions. And it was sparkly . . . and therefore perfect. If Yuri knew anything about KyuJeon, it was that he would love to have that necklace; that it would be a gift from YeongSaeng would only make it that much more amazing.

"Apparently, you're getting a set," HeeJin remarked, reaching under the glass to get the necklace Yuri had indicated. She also pulled out its companion. On a much shorter chain than the first one, a pair of tags hung that were much wider. And whereas the light refracting coating had been brushed on the first set of tags leaving vertical streaks that bent the light around the words, these tags were washed out with a light capturing coating that had been applied horizontally. The darkened silver made the etchings stand out more. On one side of the tags were images, and short phrases were on the other. On the flip side of a dragon was written "A Ceaseless Shield," and behind a yingyang stood "A Steady Field."

Yuri liked it immediately.

YeongSaeng was a little more skeptical.

"Oh, come on!" Yuri said, "It's perfect for you two! KyuJeon's the innocent, hopeful one, and you protect him and bring him down to earth when his head is in the clouds! And KyuJeon will _love_ the shiny!"

After a moment's consideration, YeongSaeng asked, "You're _sure_ Kyu will like it?"

Yuri nodded furiously, as HeeJin mentioned, "I'm with Jay on this one."

It took another moment of wavering for YeongSaeng to decide to buy the pair. HeeJin and Yuri high fived each other when he whipped out his credit card. Twenty minutes later, the box with KyuJeon's new sparkly was tucked safely in the glove compartment of YeongSaeng's boxy blue BMW, YeongSaeng's was hanging around his neck, and he and Yuri were walking into the _Sunny Dae_ studio.

Donghae refused to even look at YeongSaeng for nearly an hour. During that time he kept Jay glued to his side via a strong arm around his shoulders as he asked about what horrible deeds YeongSaeng had put him up to. Yuri did her best to explain.

Eventually, they reconciled enough to face the day of gaming craziness with the rest of Action. It was in part due to JongHyun giving them both a stern talking to about how stupidly they were both behaving. With neither KyuJeon nor Jay harmed in any way, Donghae and YeongSaeng were convinced to let it slide.

The moment filming was over though, Donghae dragged Jay outside. His motorcycle was waiting with both his and Jay's helmets looped over the handlebars. "Get on," he commanded, his voice slightly terse.

Terrified that Donghae was mad at her for a reason other than going along with YeongSaeng, Yuri did as she was told. Donghae sped across town, pulling up in front of a specialty phone store. "We're getting you a new cell phone, now; and you're _not_ going to lose this one. Do you have any idea how scared I was when I couldn't get a hold of you? What if you had really been kidnapped?"

Yuri didn't know how to respond to his scolding, so she simply sat quietly until he finished. Then she followed him inside where a very chipper sales clerk bore with Donghae's less than friendly instructions. He ended up getting her a camera phone, with video conference and recording capabilities, that had an emergency button that sent the phone's GPS coordinates to the contact listed as the number one speed dial, which he of course programmed to be his phone. Yuri was fine with anything, but this phone was a particularly pretty shade of pale blue and she headed home with him perfectly content. Donghae too left feeling satisfied, having made Jay to swear to pick the phone up immediately if he called.

Overall, he'd been so efficient, being that he'd known exactly which phone he wanted before he entered the shop, that the pair arrived only twenty minutes after the other three members of Action had. When they had gotten home, Mellow had already returned because today they'd only filmed a mini episode. The girls had come back shortly after Mellow's arrival, so Action was the last batch of popstars to make it to the dorm.

Everyone was tiptoeing a bit in regards to not quite knowing how to handle the situation with Jay and Chansung and JiEun, but the tension was completely diffused by JiEun who gave Yuri a tight bear hug and a kiss on the cheek as the little matchmaker was picking through the leftovers of the food Kihun had prepared for dinner. Chansung grumbled incoherently at the action, but his malcontent was replaced by a soft smile when JiEun bounced out of the kitchen to tuck herself against his side on the couch.

Yuri took an early shower and sat in front of the couch as the group watched the latest episodes of a popular drama. Dara sat next to her and at a look from YeongSaeng, Yuri shifted so that her arm was around Dara's shoulders. "I think he's getting suspicious of something," Yuri mentioned during the commercials after Dara asked about the sudden attentiveness in her 'boyfriend'.

After giving YeongSaeng one look, Dara replied, "He's usually the first one to pick up on the kinds of things you've been meddling with. And with you and Donghae basically dating as it is . . . I'd be very surprised if he didn't notice something."

"At this rate we may as well just tell everyone," Yuri grumbled.

Dara shrugged. "We probably could. Everyone likes you, at least as much as they like Jay. They'd probably be fine with it."

"It's certainly tempting, but YoungJae's under enough stress with everything going on," Yuri said. "I don't want to make things worse for him. In just over two weeks, the real Jay will be back in place, and Yuri will vanish for a bit before making a surprise visit to one of the concerts you've got scheduled in the next few months."

Dara was confused. "Two weeks? Is it certain this time?"

Nodding, Yuri explained with a smile, "He's on the mend. Things had kept on seeming like they were getting worse and worse because they couldn't figure out exactly what was wrong, but they've found a cluster of healing micro-fractures or something and he should be good as new in two weeks. He's staying a few extra days, just as a precaution."

"That's great!" Dara exclaimed as quietly as she could manage. In a much more appropriate level of whispering, she added, "Have you told Jaebi or SeungMi yet?"

"Nope, I only talked to Jay this morning about it," Yuri replied. "So what's left for me to face?"

Dara had to think for a second. With the scheduling mess-up some things had been pushed really far back, but there was still plenty to keep them busy while they waited for Jay to return. "Well first up we have a press conference for the release of _HeartQuake_, and then there's the Music Show performances; Music Bank, M Countdown, Music Core, Inkigayo, you know. After that, I think we might have a fan-meeting scheduled. I'm not really sure, though, because YoungJae and SooHyun handle our scheduling."

"Was the extra day for the music video really that big of a deal? I mean shouldn't they have scheduled you a day off after it anyway?" Yuri was still having trouble rationalizing the amount of work these people were expected to do. She'd once thought all pop stars, especially ones in big boy-band type, systematically manufactured groups, did nothing but look pretty, but really they did more work than most of the working public.

Dara was surprised Yuri didn't know more about the industry, seeing as her brother was involved in it and nothing they did was kept hidden from the fans. "We're in the final stages before we release a new album; time off _now_ is something no one expected. Even the schedules with the variety shows are pretty light! Usually we'd be doing these during the time we have music show performances, but since everything else was shuffled around we're doing them early. I know in about a month we've got a tour to start preparing for, but really that's not something we're dealing with right now. Basically, we're almost on vacation!"

Watching the two whispering throughout the entire evening, Donghae's satisfied smile was spotted by everyone. It would seem that he'd gotten Jay to open up to at least one person in QuaszauR. "Now all you have to do is get Dara to tell you what's bothering him, and you can wrap your little project up for the year." YeongSaeng said when he cornered Donghae in the kitchen as he was whipping up a few batches of hot chocolate.

"Dara will tell me if she thinks she needs to, but I don't think she's going to," Donghae replied. "Jay trusts her too much."

YeongSaeng grinned. "I didn't think it'd be that easy to make you give it up. So what's your plan? To just keep waiting?"

"What else can we really do?" Donghae asked, passing his friend two of the hot chocolates. He grabbed three mugs himself and headed out back to the common room. Two of the mugs made their way into Dara and Jay's hands, while Donghae announced, "The hot chocolate's ready, but if you want it you have to get it yourself."

KyuJeon was about to jump to his feet, eager for the sweet drink when YeongSaeng placed a mug in front of his face, complete with a swirl of whipped cream as a topping. Donghae watched the pair of them, and watched Jay watching them. He was going to have to keep a close eye on his little charge, knowing that when Jay got a little too eager to get his friends their happy ending he went a little overboard.

Eventually Jay was sent off to bed, a while after Dara and the other girls had turned in for the night. Most of Action joined him, as they too had a fairly early morning. Donghae gave YeongSaeng a look, but he knew that the singer would be up for another few hours.

Donghae was half expecting him and KyuJeon to _still_ be up when he wandered out of his room the next morning. The girls were already gone, as per usual, and so was Jay. This time Donghae didn't wait around to see if Jay would be coming back from the café unprompted before he went out to meet him.

When the man behind the counter told him a similar story as he had the day before, Donghae rubbed his temples in frustration. He was going to kill YeongSaeng for this. Today though, Jay had a cell phone; and Donghae called it before he'd even finished paying for coffee.

"Hiya!" Jay said into the phone immediately.

Pleased that he had at least followed instructions, Donghae asked, "Where are you?"

"I'm—," Jay started, there was a bit of a scuffle and then KyuJeon's voice filtered though the line, "He's with me, and we should be back soon. Don't worry!"

KyuJeon hung up the phone and handed it back to Jay as he dragged his friend into the store that YeongSaeng had brought him to on a few occasions in the past. Yuri for her role in all this was, was beginning to get very used to being dragged through the door of HeeJin-ssi's shop during the early hours of the morning.

"Good morning KyuJeon," HeeJin said softly when the pair made their way inside. "I haven't seen you in a long time, how have you been?"

"I'm fine HeeJin-noonim," he replied shyly. "How are you?"

With a smile in Yuri's direction, HeeJin said, "I've been pretty busy lately, but it's nothing too difficult. You and Jay seem to have the hard work around here."

"You've been here before?" KyuJeon questioned his companion.

Nodding, Yuri replied, "Donghae brought me here a few days ago."

"Why?"

"You weren't awake yet, but when I sorta pushed Chansung and JiEun . . . I got kicked out of the house," Yuri admitted. "Donghae brought me here to get ready for filming, since I couldn't get ready back at the dorm."

"Speaking of that little encounter, how has everything turned out?" HeeJin asked.

KyuJeon laughed. "Jay's our resident matchmaker. Chansung and JiEun started dating that day," he said.

"And is there a reason you're tagging along with QuaszauR's Cupid today?"

KyuJeon ducked his head a bit, working out how to phrase it. Yuri rescued him, or dug his grave if you chose to think of it that way, by saying, "It's for YeongSaeng, with the release conference coming up soon, KyuJeon wanted to get him a present."

"Ah, I see," HeeJin said with a knowing look. "Are you thinking of a trinket something, like jewelry or do you want to get him a new pair of sunglasses?"

"We're gonna go with jewelry," Yuri decided for them.

HeeJin arched an eyebrow, knowing how YeongSaeng had already bought a set of necklaces. Apparently, he hadn't given KyuJeon his necklace yet, because KyuJeon didn't protest at all. That this wasn't a thank-you-for-the-gift gift made HeeJin smile. The sudden desire must have been prompted by Donghae's necklace purchase; half of which, HeeJin could see hanging around Jay's neck.

"Right this way then," HeeJin said, leading Yuri back to the jewelry counter for the second time in 24 hours. Rather than heading straight for the necklaces like she had last time, Yuri looked towards the rings at the other end of the glass counter.

She saw a dozen swirling designs that she would have loved to get, but it took a few minutes before she spotted something that was suitable for KyuJeon and YeongSaeng. HeeJin pulled it out at her request, along with its partner.

The rings were both rather wide bands of a silvery metal brushed over lightly with a black coating that gave it a distinctly masculine and edgy feel, even though each had a few crystals embedded in the metal. There was something strongly magnetic in the cores of the rings, because delicate chains linked up to it securely from a bracelet without being permanently attached. One bracelet was a series of bangles of the same dark washed silver interconnected by a few thin strips of black leather, while the other was a thick black band of leather punctuated with blackened silver studs with a thin chain between them. They were perfect. The rings matched almost exactly and could be worn without the bracelets, and with the bracelets the two parts were dissimilar enough to be a set of non-related purchases.

KyuJeon had misgivings, but after having gone through the routine of convincing someone to buy a particular piece of jewelry once already, Yuri simply had HeeJin ring it up as she gave a general breakdown of what made the set so suitable for the pair. Ten minutes later, after a few more moments of chatter with HeeJin, whom Yuri was growing to like more and more, KyuJeon slipped into the driver's seat of his flashy orange sports car with the little blue bag tucked securely in his pocket.

The pair got back to the dorm just in time to let KyuJeon slip into his room with only half of Action knowing that he'd been out and about already. Between Donghae and Jay, JongHyun was convinced to keep it quiet from YeongSaeng. He made sure to impress upon Donghae, however, that his cooperation was a good-faith trade for Donghae's work on the song he was supposed to have finished weeks ago.

"It has to be done _before_ the next official concert," JongHyun warned.

"I swear, I'll have a full draft for you next week," Donghae promised in exchanged for JongHyun's vow to keep quiet.

Chansung came out to the kitchen in time to hear that something was up, but since Jay was involved he really didn't think he wanted to know and he refused to ask any questions on the subject. When a groggy YeongSaeng made his way out, blindly reaching for caffeine, it was time for Action to head out to their final day of filming for _Sunny Dae_. On the motorcycle ride there, Yuri asked Donghae about the song he was writing; or at least was supposed to be writing.

"I still haven't started it yet," Donghae admitted with a sheepish grin that was hidden by his helmet. "I really had intended to, by now I honestly thought it would be almost done, but it's just gotten away from me."

Yuri gave him an admonishing look, one that filtered into her voice so as to be noticed even though he couldn't see it. "You really shouldn't let anything get in the way of that! What about your fans? I'm sure they're going to be disappointed that your song isn't on the album."

"Says the man whose solo is only on the album because I pulled all-nighters for a week with YeongSaeng to get the music just right," Donghae replied, ruffling Jay's hair as he pulled his helmet off when they pulled up in front of the studio. Jay's expression was filled with concern at the fact that Donghae had abused himself so thoroughly for a song that wasn't even his. "Come on. It's our last day, which means there're doughnuts."

The bribe had the desired effect, getting Jay to stop worrying about Donghae's well-being and head into the studio with a chipper bounce to his stride.

As Donghae had guessed he would, Jay went straight for the double chocolate doughnuts; snatching two before the rest of QuaszauR Action had even realized they were there. She'd always loved doughnuts and since coming to face Korea's rather interesting menu for so much longer than she'd expected to was less than thrilling, having the familiar taste of the dry chocolaty cake in her mouth was a welcome reminder of the United States. Yuri brought one of her treats to Donghae, but she was reluctant to hand it over; it was a vibe that made itself apparent though subtleties in her actions. Donghae solved the problem by ordering YeongSaeng to grab him a powered sugar instead, much to Jay's puppy-like pleasure.

The finale of Action's time on _Sunny Dae_ was to be a special episode. Two female members of the crew were brought on as guest hosts, each with a plastic rose in her hand for the duration of the show. At the end, it was to be given to the member that had most gained their favor during the episode. Additionally, aside from the little competition between members, and the usual string of games, there was a segment where each member was categorized based on fan submissions.

Leader JongHyun was the strong and silent type, which fit what the other members thought of him; sweet and supporting, but always acting form the shadows. Donghae wanted to contradict a bit of the claim, citing JongHyun's strong-arming to get his job done; but really, JongHyun was a big softie and Donghae would be surprised if he actually carried through on one of his threats.

Chansung was the sweet one, shyer than the rest, and the slowest to mess with the status quo. Yuri agreed vehemently with this, telling the story about how Jay had needed to push him and JiEun in order to get them together. This got Jay a lot of support from the staff, a glare from Chansung, and a dozen more questions from MC DaeSung. Jay's own girlfriend wasn't explicitly revealed, being that at this point his more-than-friends-bond with Dara was an understood fact, but his part in the development of Jaebi and SeungMi's relationship was.

YeongSaeng was the smart one, sensible at all times. Donghae tried to get that overturned, but the approval of the others drowned him out. Chansung helped the leader with the administrative aspect of Action, but it was YeongSaeng that helped JongHyun manage the band's members. His wisdom and straightforward guidance could pull even the craziest member back down to earth, and raise the spirits of anyone feeling overwhelmed in the same instant. Donghae spent the entire segment grumbling about how YeongSaeng was really just an idiot in Einstein's clothing.

For his part, Donghae was labeled the funny one. He was the group's mood setter; be it focusing the members on the concert, rehearsal, album preparations, or goofing off to keep the strain of the immense pressure they were all under from destroying their health, his role was deemed the most important. He mothered them all, keeping their spirits up, and their bodies healthy, as he worked himself to death for his fans. JongHyun proclaimed that the singer probably would have died years ago, had YeongSaeng not been there to knock some sense into him, as he worked overwhelmingly hard to give back to his fans. And now that YeongSaeng had Jay helping him, JongHyun was almost confident that Donghae was actually healthy.

As maknae, Jay was automatically the cute one. DaeSung wasn't so sure how much Jay deserved the title of cutest member, regardless of how young he was. YeongSaeng's face was very round, a traditionally cute characteristic. And his sweet smile was almost puppy-like in its adorably mischievous turn. The female guest hosts however, defended the fans' positions. YeongSaeng was much more suave than cute, they claimed. If anyone in Action could be considered cuter than Jaebeom, it would have to be Donghae. His innate sweetness and trend of adorable immaturity the moment he wasn't required to focus did lend itself to the idea of cuteness.

Donghae flatly refused to accept this. He asked that the box of doughnuts be brought over. Yuri was excited at the prospect of getting another chocolaty doughnut, a bouncy state of mind that was easily picked up on by everyone in the studio. Donghae knew there were only two left and he gave them to each of the female hosts. Yuri's reflexive pout at the action quickly resolved any remaining doubts that Jay was the cute one, and her pout that she'd been caught pouting at something so small as not getting a chocolate doughnut prompted her to latch onto Donghae's arm and hide her face from the camera, which in turn melted every heart in the studio and audience alike. Needless to say, both female guest hosts gave Jay half of their chocolate doughnuts very quickly.

At the end of the episode, Jay also received both of the guest hosts' roses. He was also subject to a severe bout of flirting from the young women as the crew cleaned up, which Jay apparently could hardly recognize, let alone deal with. Yuri had never been flirted at by a girl before, and though it was obvious to everyone but her, the attempts she made to maintain small talk were only making things worse. Donghae swooped in to Jay's rescue, wrapping an arm around his trim waist and physically lifting him away from the girls in one fluid motion. "Sorry, ladies, he's mine for the afternoon," he called over his shoulder as he carried Jay outside with ease, draped over his arm like a limp puppy.

The rest of action was waiting for them. "It seems a shame to go home so early," Chansung said, speaking what was on everyone's mind.

With a sly grin, Donghae suggested, "There's an amusement park nearby, and since it's a weekday, I'm sure it won't be too busy."

It took a moment, but soon everyone was thrilled by the prospect. Even JongHyun was excited. Despite that, he cautioned, "Hats and sunglasses, and we don't split up."

"Perfect!" Donghae said, tossing Jay's helmet to him. "Let's go!"

The amusement park wasn't half as empty as Donghae had thought it would be, but at this point very little concern surfaced in reaction. Everyone was too excited. With their 'disguises' in place the five made their way inside. Seeing as more than half of the rides they set foot on were roller-coasters that prohibited both, hats and sunglasses, the disguises weren't worth very much anyway.

They were easily recognized. However, either their fans had chosen to be very polite, or they were constantly moving around too much for the fans to keep up, because they weren't bothered by anyone coming up to ask for autographs; even as fans could be easily heard squealing throughout the park at their every move.

Around four, QuaszauR Mellow got out of their half day of filming; they had another round in the morning, but a party for the second to last filming day still seemed fitting. With a few quick calls, the five ballad singers joined the others at the amusement park. The girls' last day was a full one, so they were doomed to merely hear the stories of the boys' day at the park. The boys were a bit saddened by that fact, but since they were already here . . .

The ten of them stayed together, making them even more recognizable. Still, the fans were polite enough to let them have their fun. Go-kart racing, indoor ice-skating, and a dozen little carnival games kept them occupied for another few hours. When the rest were about ready to go, KyuJeon announced a strong desire to ride the Ferris wheel.

YeongSaeng of course, volunteered to go with him. Yuri thought it would be fun too and she and KyuJeon went skipping off towards the ride as the others debated. Donghae was staying, predictably. Jinki and Jaebi were both for the idea and went racing off after KyuJeon and Jay immediately. When they caught up, the four continued their prance. JongHyun decided that he'd stay behind too, mostly because his car was the only one big enough to take four passengers. YoungJae and Kihun drove their own cars home, with Chansung hitching a ride with YoungJae.

YeongSaeng, Donghae, and JongHyun joined the other four in line just as Jay jumped on top of Jinki and flipped over to land in a slide with jazz hands to the delight of a little girl in line in front of the group. Jinki and Jay then proceeded with KyuJeon and Jaebi to choreograph a little dance to the sound of the amusement park's jingle. It was good to see Jay joking around, especially with Jinki.

Donghae had been really worried about the two of them for a while, as they had seemed so close until Jay's debut concert. After that they appeared to have a falling out and hadn't so much as spoken to each other for a week. Donghae had never been able to figure out if they had argued, but now they seemed to be almost as good friends as they had been before.

As Donghae reflected on that fact the line before him dissolved and suddenly it was their turn. YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, Jay, and Donghae filled the first box; and Jinki, Jaebi and JongHyun took the second.

The view from the top was incredible. The sun was just beginning to set and the golden light bounced off every glass surface in the city. Their ride took them around a few times, but when it finished, KyuJeon and Jay still hadn't had enough. Donghae and YeongSaeng, predictably, were dragged along again. JongHyun, Jinki, and Jaebi opted to wait by the car as the other four went around once more.

This time, Yuri latched onto YeongSaeng's arm and dragged him away from the others to the great surprise of all. Yuri managed to get YeongSaeng and herself into a gondola all alone before KyuJeon and Donghae even realized what was happening. Once inside she asked the question that had been bothering her all day, "Why haven't you given KyuJeon the necklace yet?"

It caught YeongSaeng a bit off guard, but he was able to answer fairly quickly. "I'm trying to wait for a good opportunity."

Yuri gave him an exasperated look. "Because they roll around every few days."

"Well, if I randomly just give him a necklace, don't you think he'll be a bit suspicious? I don't want him to think I'm giving it to him so he won't be mad for something else," YeongSaeng tried to reason.

With exasperation still clearly in her eyes, Yuri countered, "And what could you possibly have done that he would be mad at?"

"KyuJeon can sometimes be unreasonable, you should know that," YeongSaeng replied.

"Only around you, and only because he wants your attention," Yuri retorted.

With a small smile, YeongSaeng asked, "Then what would you have me do? Tell him I'm giving him an early birthday present?"

"Of course not, that's ridiculous," Yuri scoffed. Then an idea came to her. She was sure that KyuJeon would be furious with her for it though. She was thinking of not pressing it, but she really did want to see KyuJeon and YeongSaeng make some progress before she had to trade back with her brother. "Give it to him tomorrow morning and tell him you got it for him because it's Tuesday," she said.

"Why? Tomorrow's not Tuesday."

"Exactly."

"I don't get it, what does the day have to do with anything if it's not Tuesday?"

With a trickle of worry creeping into her mind, Yuri said, "Don't worry, KyuJeon will understand."

"Now I'm even more confused. And slightly worried," YeongSaeng admitted. "Have you talked to him about this already?"

"It may have come up once or twice in round-about conversation," Yuri admitted

Sighing heavily, YeongSaeng asked, "If I tell him that, will he get mad?"

"Not at you," Yuri said with certainty as their ride came to an end.

Meanwhile, KyuJeon and Donghae had spent a full rotation of the Ferris wheel trying to figure out what Jay had wanted with YeongSaeng. By the second time around they could actually focus on having a conversation with each other, though it was about YeongSaeng and Jay. Donghae thought he knew what was going on, but he was sure that neither of the two popstars would want him to tell KyuJeon.

KyuJeon didn't notice Donghae's evasions too much, because he was trying to steer the conversation away from YeongSaeng anyway. He wanted to know about Jay. But he was too shy to directly ask his hyung about it like he'd asked Jay. Instead he opted for the non-subtle, subtle route. "I wonder why Jay keeps running off lately," he said, watching Donghae carefully.

"He's given me more than a few heart-attacks this week," Donghae admitted.

"What's up with him? Has he said anything to you?"

With a long sigh, Donghae said, "It's Jay, do you really think he's told anyone what's going on?"

"Well, he seems really attached to you," KyuJeon mentioned.

Donghae rolled his lips over his teeth in something between a smirk and an expression of chagrin. "I'm trying. He's such a sweet kid, and he has this way of doing things that makes everything in the world seem like it's just a little problem. I can honestly say I've never been more comfortable around anyone, except YeongSaeng. He's got that soft but strong vibe that makes everything seem like it'll turn out okay in the end. I just wish I could get him to open up a bit more to us all. He makes us all feel comfortable, but he always seems so stiff."

For KyuJeon, that just about answered his question, but he wanted it in black and white. "So you _do_ like him," KyuJeon pushed.

"Of course, he's my bandmate," Donghae said simply, causing KyuJeon to suddenly feel the urge to hang his head in exasperation. "Even if I didn't like him that much at first, I would have needed to get to liking him; but he's really grown on me recently."

If this is how everyone Jay had helped had behaved, KyuJeon was willing to take a little leniency in regards to how Jay had reacted to it. Even KyuJeon was starting to get frustrated. He wondered how to rephrase the question to make it more obvious, while still keeping a level of respect in his words. "You take really good care of him," KyuJeon mentioned.

"If I don't, who will? I doubt YeongSaeng has the time deal with _his_ messes when he's busy chasing after you," Donghae replied.

KyuJeon was prevented from trying another foray by the fact that the ride came to an end. He and Donghae slid outside without any hesitation. They fell back to the sides of the people they actually wanted to spend the early evening with, and everything went back to the way it had been before Jay dragged YeongSaeng off.


	11. Trust and Changes, and also a Cat

JongHyun got everyone who was going in his car piled into it and Donghae was left alone to deal with Jay's insane desire for ice cream; an urge that was triggered by the lights turning on as the sun set while Action's leader drove off. It was a glowing sign for a shop just across the street that had caught his attention, and Jay's eyes were drawn to it like moths to a flame. Donghae sighed.

"Let's go," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "We've got a minute."

Yuri's wide eyes turned the full force of their happy beam on Donghae, who quickly realized that he was completely defenseless against it as a mirroring happiness radiated though him. He ruffled Jay's hair, slung an arm around his shoulders, and led him across the street. A sweet chocolate cone later and Jay was the bounciest thing Donghae had seen since someone gave MinJi a Monster.

And then it started to rain.

The downpour was quite unexpected, seeing as the previously clear skies and the forecast would have indicated that the next rain shouldn't have been for a few days. Donghae hurried back under the awning outside the ice cream shop, ready to wait out the storm. Yuri however was standing out in the middle of it, her face turned up into the rain. She was soaked through in about five seconds.

Donghae gave another long sigh.

Trying for a few seconds to keep the worst of the wet out, Donghae stepped forward to join his charge. "What are you doing?" Donghae asked, hugging his coat closed around his neck.

Flashing him a wet smile Yuri said, "It's nice, don't you think? The rain."

"It's cold and wet, like it always is," Donghae replied.

"But it's nice too," Yuri said, turning her face back towards the sky. "It washes everything away, all the stress and problems."

"A shower does that too, you know," Donghae said, wrapping his arms around him to try and stave off the cold.

Yuri laughed softly. "You said I should trust you about the bike, right? How it makes you feel better when you're upset? Now you should trust me. Rain makes you feel better, even when you don't feel messed up. Give me your hands."

Eyeing his bandmate warily, Donghae uncurled himself and slipped his hands into Jay's waiting ones. Yuri took Donghae, stiff as he was, out into the very center of the street and made him spread his arms. "Close your eyes, and don't move from where I put you," she said.

"I trust you," Donghae said, complying. His words were simple and utterly honest, and they made Yuri's heart soar.

She kept one of his hands in hers, letting the other one turn up to feel the rain. She went around behind him, tilting his head back. She laughed as he flinched at the waves of water hitting his face. "Eyes closed," she reminded him. Letting go of Donghae's other hand, she added, "Just drift off, relax; if you know how to that is."

"Breathe in, breathe out, right?" Donghae said, a smile in his voice.

"Yep," Yuri said softly, right behind him. Then she fell silent, letting him take in the sound of the falling rain. She watched him in silence, thinking about how different life would be for her back at school; there she didn't have anyone to worry about, or have worry for her sake. She didn't have someone to buy coffee for. Or anyone to make her laugh.

Her school life was really just like a job, something she did because she had to, because she was expected to. Sure she liked learning, enjoyed the mental agility her classes required, but she had little emotional attachment to the place. Even less tied her to the people.

Leaving what was here for that wasn't an awe inspiring prospect.

This wasn't hers however. This life, the people it entailed, it all belonged to Jay. And Yuri was going to have to give it up quietly if she liked it or not.

"You're kind of right about this rain thing," Donghae said suddenly, without opening his eyes. "But it's awfully lonely."

Before she knew what she was doing, Yuri had slipped her arms around Donghae's waist and pressed her cheek into his wet back. "Nothing should ever make you, of all people, feel lonely," she said. "You've got so many friends and fans supporting you, just like all the millions of little rain drops, helping you get rid of all the bad things."

"You have at least as many friends," Donghae pointed out.

Yuri smiled sadly into his back. "Perhaps, but when I didn't have anyone, the raindrops were my friends. It rains a lot back in the States, so I never felt too lonely."

This was the most Jay had ever said about his personal life that Donghae had ever heard of, and he reveled in his limited success. He wanted to press into whatever was currently bothering his dongsaeng, but he decided that it would be better to just let Jay get to it in his own time. Grabbing Jay's hands, he pulled them off his waist, but kept a hold of them as he said, "Come on; let's go home."

Yuri followed him without complaint, though she would have liked nothing better than to stand there forever. She rode behind Donghae on the way home. He had to navigate carefully through the rain. Getting whipped by the rain checked their speed a bit, but since they were already both completely soaked through, it didn't really matter that it took them a few extra minutes to get home. And from behind Donghae, Yuri didn't feel any of the stinging spray that he did.

It was fairly cold though. By the time they reached the dorms, Yuri's fingers and toes had gone numb and she couldn't really feel the skin on her arms at all. It was nice and warm in the parking garage though, and dry. They left a puddle trail as they rolled down to the spots reserved for QuaszauR.

"You head inside, I'm gonna dry this thing off a bit first," Donghae said, sliding off his soaked jacket. He slung it over the side of a concrete barrier, exchanging it for a towel he had waiting there in case he happed to get caught in the rain as he rode. The bike wasn't really an all-weather vehicle, after all.

Yuri nodded, and went to follow Donghae's instructions; her hand was already on the door to the main building, when her ears caught the echo of a pitiful sound she couldn't quite identify. It would only take a second to investigate, she thought. Following the quiet sounds to the source, Yuri found a small kitten dangling from one paw that was trapped in the wiring that kept street debris from washing into the garage with the rain. It must have been trying to get out of the rain when its paw got stuck.

The kitten was a scrappy little fellow, soaked to the bone, and shivering so violently that it looked like a cell phone ringing on vibrate, and still strong enough to try and fight its way out while calling for help. The tiny tabby's orange fur was washed flat against its skinny body, and one of his little triangular ears was missing a chunk from the side.

Yuri's heart melted completely when the kitten turned its pitiful emerald eyes on her. She couldn't just leave him there. Moving slowly and carefully, she lifted the kitten, which once she got it in her arms was much more the size of a cat than a kitten, so that its weight wasn't on its paw anymore. Then she set to work carefully untangling the creature. The cat sat perfectly still in her arms, as if he knew that Yuri was trying to help him. Once he was free, Yuri had meant to set him down and let him go back to taking care of himself.

But he was just so wet, and that paw would need at least a day to heal. Maybe she could take him inside for just a bit, one warm meal and a nice safe place to sleep, and then she'd send him on his way. Surely no one would mind the kitten staying just one night, right? Jay had told her that none of the popstars he was living with had any allergies, so that wouldn't be an obstacle.

She tucked the cat into her soaked jacket, for all the protection it provided, and headed back towards the dorms. She met Donghae as he darted through the closing doors of the elevator. He wasn't wearing his shirt anymore; both it and his jacket had been thoroughly wrung out at the door and were now draped loosely over one arm.

As Yuri's breathing malfunctioned a bit and her heart basically stopped, Donghae reprimanded, "Why aren't you upstairs already? You'll catch a cold if you stay in those wet clothes. At least take off your shirt, you need to dry off."

When Jay didn't move, Donghae grabbed the collar of his jacket and tried to pull it off of him. To his surprise, Jay defended it fiercely. "You're going to get sick," Donghae reminded, pulling at the fabric a bit more forcefully.

Jay was clearly shivering violently under his wet clothing and Donghae's demand that he take off the dripping material was perfectly reasonable. Donghae didn't understand why Jay was resisting him so strongly. It couldn't be shyness; that much was certain. Of QuaszauR's members, Jay's body was one of the best and he'd shown his muscles off in more than one pre-debut photo shoot and selca series. Frustrated, and concerned for Jay's health above all, Donghae tried again, this time with both hands working to strip Jay of the terribly unhealthy clothing.

That's when he heard the meow. Big green eyes peeked up at him from under Jay's jacket as he managed to get the sopping article off one shoulder.

"Jay, what is that?"

Donghae was frozen in place as the furry creature started quizzically up at him.

"Nothing," Jay murmured, shrugging his jacket back into place.

The cat would have none of this and for the first time since Yuri picked him up, he struggled to get free. He only fought until he could poke his head out from inside Yuri's coat to peek at Donghae with his head turned cutely to the side.

"You can't keep it," Donghae said flatly.

Pouting, Yuri retorted, "Who said I wanted to? His paw's hurt, I'm just gonna let him sleep in my room tonight and in the morning I'll let him go."

"We can't take care of a cat," Donghae continued. "You know we're too busy."

"I'm not going to keep him."

"You _can't_ keep it."

For the third time, Yuri repeated the sentiment, "I wasn't planning on keeping him."

Donghae eyed both Jay and the kitten carefully. Both were giving him a look, one that he had even less defense against than Jay's radiant happiness. "Just for tonight, it can come in. But it has to stay in your room, and you have to take a shower right away."

"_He_ is going to stay curled up in my room all night," Yuri said. "No one else will even notice him."

"He'd better," Donghae grumbled as the elevator doors rolled open on their floor.

Yuri went straight to her room, still dripping a bit, as Donghae watched from the kitchen. Once Jay had emerged with his pajamas in tow and had closed himself in the bathroom, Donghae went to his own room and did the same. He was quicker to finish than Jay and headed out to the common room after a detour to the small laundry room in the back of the dorm where he tossed his wet clothes in the wash.

No one said anything when he crashed down on the couch with a blanket around his shoulders, but Dara was giving him a look. "You're boyfriend is the craziest person on the planet," Donghae told her. "He made me stand out in the rain for half an hour."

"I'm sure he had to fight tooth and nail to get you to do it," Dara replied, a bit of the secret satisfaction she harbored slipping into her voice. Donghae didn't notice, but the other girls did, and they all shared her pleasure. YeongSaeng noticed it too, and it intrigued him more than any of Jay's strangeness over the past month had.

Donghae sat another few minutes, watching the drama displayed on the screen without really seeing it. Then he stood up rather abruptly, his blanket still around his shoulders, and went to the kitchen to make tea. Dara, KyuJeon, and YeongSaeng followed him. The others looked with interest from the couch, but they remained seated.

YeongSaeng and KyuJeon watched Dara curiously as she settled down on one of the stools at the breakfast bar. "Tell me what happened," Dara commanded, her eyes filled with rabid interest. When Donghae resisted, she prodded, "Come on, he's _my_ boyfriend, I deserve to know."

"He didn't flirt with anyone else, if that's what you're worried about," Donghae promised, taking a dish towel from the drawer and using it to finish drying the last dampness from his hair. "He even resisted the allure of the host noonas at _Sunny Dae _and _they_ were experts at flirting."

Dara laughed. "I'm more interested in why you didn't bring him home with everyone after the amusement park." The water was ready and she watched as Donghae filled two mugs with waiting teabags and then after a thought he pulled out a bowl and poured in water and instant oatmeal.

"I tried, but he wanted ice cream and there was a shop right there, and then he made me stand out in the rain, and when I finally did get him back here, instead of going inside he wandered off!" Donghae defended. Jay had really dragged him around tonight. And he now had a kitten to deal with too.

As Donghae finished mixing some honey into the chamomile tea he was preparing, Jay finally walked out into the common room. Yuri had taken an extra long shower, using up all the hot water that was still available. She was getting sick; she could feel it in the back of her throat and she wanted to warm up as thoroughly as possible.

Donghae met her as she came out into the hall. He passed her a mug of steaming tea and then threw a small towel over her head. He rubbed out even the tiniest droplet of water, so that Yuri's hair was only the slightest bit damp as he pushed her into her room.

The cat was sitting on her bed; too busy giving itself a bath to even look up as they entered. Donghae shut the door behind him, worried that the cat would make a run for it, even as he seemed perfectly content to stay where he was.

Yuri took a sip of tea, wincing at the bitter flavor. It had honey in it, she could tell, which made the bitterness bearable. Then she set the mug down on her side table and set to work getting the cat a makeshift litter box.

In the bottom of Jay's closest was a box. Yuri knew exactly what was in it, because she had an identical one in her closet back in her school dorm. Eight half-gallon jars filled with sand, one for every day of the only vacation they had ever gone on as one complete and moderately happy family. The lid of the box could serve as the tray; and a little bit of sand from each jar made for an acceptable litter substitute. After making sure the cat knew the litter box was there, Yuri covered the box in the closet with one of the T-Shirts hanging above and shut the door.

Donghae wisely didn't say anything. Instead, he pulled Jay into his lap as he leaned up against Jay's head board and folded the covers down for easy access before handing Jay his cup of tea from the bedside table. Donghae sipped his own tea as he hugged a quiet and not quite shivering Jay. Slowly, he got Jay to warm up enough so that he would have felt comfortable letting him sit on his own, but he didn't make a move to encourage the action. Jay wasn't the least bit heavy and he was small enough for Donghae to relax with his arms around him without the slightest effort.

In another few minutes of sipping her tea, so deep in thought so as to not notice the proximity that would have made her breathing stop altogether had circumstances been different, Yuri said, "That sand is from when I was seven years old. We were on vacation in the Outer Banks. Three days after we got back from that, my mom filed for divorce. She'd moved out to Los Angeles within a week. The next year Dad just left, on my birthday. I wanted him to get me another birthday cake, because I'd only gotten one piece at my party. He went to the store, and then he just didn't come back. This sand is basically the last happy memory of the Kim siblings. Five years ago, one ran off to be a singer and a few years later the other got into her dream University. And they all lived happily ever after."

Yuri stared down into the swirls of her tea, falling silent.

Throughout her little monologue, Donghae had been petting Jay's hair softly but he was forced to pause when Jay twisted and flashed him a big smile over his narrow shoulder, saying, "So now, you know my family history, pretty boring, right?"

"Oh yeah, it was putting me to sleep there for a minute," Donghae replied, working very hard to keep the tone light as he knocked a shoulder in gentle playfulness against Jay's back. Then, giving Jay's head a final comforting pat, he commanded, "You should get to bed; if you get sick, I'm blaming the cat and it's going to a pound instead of just back where it belongs."

Yuri nodded and slipped off of Donghae's lap and under the covers carefully, so as not to disturb her kitty companion. She stayed in a vaguely sitting position, waving her mug at Donghae as he gave her an admonishing look. He sighed, but let it pass. Then he edged off the bedside and slipped quietly out the door, closing it securely. The cat looked pretty shifty and he wasn't going to take any unnecessary chances.

Outside, he didn't feel like going back to the common room. Instead he went to his own room, thinking over what Jay had said to him. He wasn't sure if he should be happy that he finally got Jay to talk about it, or depressed about what exactly Jay had been harboring all alone. It wasn't any wonder to him why Jay had kept so quiet about himself, even thinking about his past must not be pleasant. When compared to his own family, two supportive parents who were thoroughly in love, and an older brother that was better for the role than what anyone could ask for, Jay's family circumstances made Donghae feel guilty. He was glad that Jay had confided in him though, despite the fact that he didn't know what to do about the information he had gained.

What he did know as he settled himself in his own bed was that he felt unseasonably chilly alone under his covers and it would have been nice to have a soft warm figure curl up beside him, despite any band protest that might arise. It had been so much warmer and more comfortable in Jay's room. It was merely a wistful thought, however, as the cat would _have_ to leave in the morning.

Outside, KyuJeon and YeongSaeng were working out how to digest information as well. Theirs however was of a more confusing nature. Dara _wanted_ Donghae to keep taking special care of Jay. Most people would think that a girlfriend would want to have the pleasure to herself. SeungMi was certainly enjoying her new found job of keeping Jaebi healthy; and JiEun too, was more than excited to be handling Chansung's well-being. But Dara . . . she was practically pushing her boyfriend into another caretaker's arms, and she was grinning about it all the way.

"If you keep letting Donghae handle everything, Jay's gonna think you don't like him anymore," YeongSaeng mentioned, fighting and failing to keep the knowing curiosity out of his voice. Donghae was spending too much time with Jay for it to go unnoticed, but he wanted Dara's honest take on it.

"I really think I might love Jay," Dara said, her eyes no longer focused on the spot down the hall that marked Jay's room, but rather on some point that only she could see.

The conviction in her voice made both KyuJeon and YeongSaeng pause. Was this some sort of self-sacrifice thing, they were wondering. Did Dara's concern for Jay run so deep it made her willing to let him go if he wanted her to? Then Dara smiled, saying, "I think Yuri's already planning our wedding, though there's no way to tell if we'll even last through another two weeks."

"Did you guys fight or something?" KyuJeon asked, worried.

With a grin Dara said, "No, we're just peachy. But Life's unpredictable, you know?"

She caught a glance from SooHyun and trotted off to give her female leader the story Donghae had given her.

KyuJeon and YeongSaeng just looked at each other. "Do you understand them at all?" KyuJeon wondered aloud.

Shaking his head, YeongSaeng admitted, "I guess where Jay's concerned, the unpredictable is the commonplace. He's never done things the way I expected him to."

"Do you think it's weird, how he's so close to Donghae?" KyuJeon pressed, not quite sure what he wanted to get out of the question. He was already certain that YeongSaeng wasn't the same kind of person he was.

YeongSaeng hesitated to answer, as confused by what KyuJeon wanted from the question as KyuJeon himself was. "I think Donghae is someone who's very easy to get close to," he settled on replying after a minute. "And Jay is someone who needs someone to be close to," he added. Then he gave KyuJeon a pat on the head and then used the remains of the water Donghae had heated up for tea to make himself and KyuJeon mugs of hot chocolate.

Then they joined the others on the couch. Mellow couldn't stay up as late as the five members had been recently; their last day of filming began at ten the next morning rather than the two pm they had been used to this week. The others went off to bed not long after Mellow's members, Action because their day at the amusement park had tired them out, and Sweet because they were tired of thinking about Action's day at the amusement park.

They all got a great night's sleep as the rain pounded down on the dorm's roof and splashed against its windows. Only Donghae was the least bit perturbed, thinking over everything that Jay had said to him over the past month as he pulled his blankets tightly around his shoulders.

Yuri was sound asleep, even deeper in the realm of dreams than the rest of the band. After Donghae had left, giving her a bowl of oatmeal before he did so, Yuri took a few bites and gave the rest to the cat sitting beside her to finish up after he was done with his bath. She could feel the edges of sickness creeping around her, but she had gone to bed stubbornly resisting waking up ill and had forced herself into the most recuperative sleep she could manage.

When she woke up the next morning, she could tell it was later than usual. She got dressed, heading out like she did every morning to breakfast at the café. She had a low grade fever, but she'd gone though exams with much worse, so it wasn't too much of a concern. The strange thing was not knowing what she would be expected to do today.

She'd spent the week going to the studio for filming for _Sunny Dae_, it had become the routine. Now though she didn't have anything to do. Pulling out her sparkly new phone, she decided to call Donghae, he always had the answers.

But he didn't pick up his phone.

Yuri left a chipper message saying that if he didn't wake up soon, Yuna-noonim would probably come after him with a pitchfork. Then she finished her breakfast up, in peace for the first time in three days, and headed back up to the dorm. Dara was waiting for her, fiddling with her phone.

"I just tried calling you," she said, with a smile. "We've got the day off!"

"Again?"

Dara shrugged. "Mellow's busy, which means that we can't do anything as a full group today. And since we've finished filming, we get to just sit around today."

"Does that mean Yuri gets to fly in for another shopping day with the girls?"

This time a huge grin spread across Dara's lips. "Well, that depends. Her brother might already be too tied up to meet her at the airport; I think YeongSaeng and Donghae are looking forward to day boy's day out with the rest of Action."

At this Yuri had to smile too, but then Dara squinted at her. "Are you feeling okay? Your face looks a little flushed, and not shy-around-the-crush kind of flushed."

"I'm fine," Yuri said.

Dara didn't believe it for a second. She pressed her hand to Yuri's forehead and let out a gasp, "You're burning up! How long did you stand out in the rain for?"

"It's not that bad, I've ridden a Dressage test with worse than this," Yuri proclaimed.

Dara wasn't paying any attention. If she had been, she would have asked what on earth a Dressage test was, but as it was, she was simply interested in urging Yuri back to her room. When she got the door open she was met with a surprised mewl, which she answered with a surprised shout.

"He's just here for a little bit," Yuri hurried to explain. She had intended to send him on his way right when she woke up, but his paw was still giving him problems, so she'd decided to let him recuperate during the day while the band was busy and then send him on his way when the day's activities wrapped up for the night.

Dara swallowed her explanation in one go. The cat was very cute after all, and his paw was clearly injured. "I'll take care of Marmy, you just go to sleep."

"Marmy?"

"Short for Marmalade," Dara explained. "What? He has to have a name, doesn't he? We can't just keep calling him 'the cat' when we talk about him, can we?"

"We can't keep him," Yuri said.

Dara ignored her, pushing her into bed, and scooping up the cat and the empty bowl of oatmeal, all at the same time. "Don't you worry, Marmy will be safe with me," Dara promised. "Now, you get some sleep, and I'll get you some food later."

Faced with little choice in the matter, Yuri complied. She did feel better once she was tucked back beneath the covers and soon she was back in a sound sleep.

Outside, Dara was giving Marmy another bowl of oatmeal, letting him stand on top of the counter as he ate so she could see him better. The poor thing was much skinnier than he had looked curled up on Yuri's bed. And it was so cute.

A star-struck SeungMi agreed as she walked into the kitchen for breakfast. "It's adorable," were the first words out of her mouth.

"His name is Marmy, and he's gonna stay here for a few days," Dara said with certainty. "His paw hurts."

"Really? He's gonna stay with us?" SeungMi squealed quietly.

Jaebi was by her side in a minute after having heard her from just outside his room. "We get to keep him?"

"Not forever," Dara cautioned weakly. By now she wasn't planning on letting the cat go anywhere for any reason.

"It's so cute!" exclaimed JiEun, joining the scene with a sleepy Chansung following close behind.

"What you guys doing?" SooHyun yawned, coming into the kitchen to see that a small group had gathered around the breakfast bar. "What is that?"

"It's a kitty!" MinJi chirped in excitement as she slipped under SooHyun's arm to get a better look.

With all the fuss being raised over the adorable kitten, soon everyone was awake and gathered around the counter top where Marmy was still eating away without concern for his spectators. Only Yuri, who was sleeping like the dead, YeongSaeng, who was outside, and Donghae, who was the reason YeongSaeng was outside, were absent from the group.

YoungJae found himself facing the pleading stares of every one of his present band members except for JongHyun, Chansung, and Kihun. Chansung was roped into agreeing with the pleading masses as his girlfriend turned her big eyes away from YoungJae for all of thirty seconds. Only Kihun and JongHyun were left to support YoungJae in his decision to not keep the cat.

"He is awfully cute, though," Kihun mentioned without looking at the leader.

"And small, he can't possibly take up more room than a shoebox," JongHyun mused.

YoungJae massaged his temples. "Who even brought him inside?"

"Donghae."

Dara's claim was undisputed, as anyone who would really care to argue against it wasn't present to do so.

"This is a few steps up from teddy bears," YoungJae said, looking at SeungMi for a few seconds. He searched for Jay's face in the group, and not finding it, looked for YeongSaeng's. With neither present, he would have to ask them about this ruckus later, and give a few curt words to Donghae as well. "Fine, he can stay," the leader relented after an admirable period of standing up to the pleading of his bandmates, and the cuteness of Marmy himself. "Jaebi, SeungMi, Jinki, KyuJeon, MinJi," he commanded. "I'm putting you in charge of getting everything he needs from the pet store. Put it all in the wash room. Don't go overboard, if you spend all of your money on this cat I'm not going to pay your school fees, got it? You're going to be the ones responsible for taking care of him. And somebody find Donghae!"

"He's with MinYeon."

The statement came from YeongSaeng, who had walked through the door just as YoungJae made his declaration. His expression was not happy.

"What's wrong?" YoungJae asked immediately.

"Nothing, he's just being annoying," YeongSaeng said. "MinYeon got caught in the downpour yesterday, for like a minute, and now she's in the hospital without so much as a sniffle. Donghae's skipped out on us to be with her."

Kihun said softly after a moment, "We shouldn't be surprised by it, I mean he always used run to her side every free moment he had."

No one mentioned it, but everyone was thinking about how Jay had changed that.

"Where is Jay anyway?" asked SeungMi.

Dara grumbled, "In bed, sick as a dog."

There was another moment of malcontent silence before Marmy mewled, seeking an escape from the counter as he'd finished his breakfast. YoungJae backed away, ordering the younger members to get to work getting the stuff the cat would require. The five of them nodded and ran off together, their chipper mood back in place. "Jinki, KyuJeon, and Jaebi," YoungJae called after them, "You'd better be back in an hour, we have filming to get to today."

"Does Donghae know Jay's sick?" Kihun asked, his thoughts on the oddity that was a present and a vanishing possibly being connected.

YeongSaeng shook his head. "You know Donghae; he doesn't answer his phone when he's with MinYeon. I had to chase him to the hospital to even ask what he was doing."

Meanwhile Yuri was unaware that any of this was happening. She woke up a few hours after Dara had sent her back to bed to find that Dara was setting up a tray table with an assortment of foods that were traditionally considered good for the sick.

"It's barely even a fever," Yuri complained.

She tried to sit up, but Marmy perched himself firmly on her chest. "See you need to rest, even Marmy agrees," Dara said.

Pushing the cat down to her lap so that she could at least sit up to eat, Yuri noticed his new collar, a green stretch of woven fabric with a little gold bell hanging from underneath. "He's staying?" Yuri guessed immediately.

Happily, Dara nodded. "YoungJae likes him too, he's just not saying so."

"Now, no more chit-chat," Dara said sternly after a moment more of discussing the cat's new position in the band's family. "Eat up, and then get back to sleep."

She left Yuri alone with Marmy, the cat had pawed at the girl's door from the minute he'd gotten free of his circle of admirers and he wasn't planning on leaving his rescuer anytime soon. Not too long after she left, YeongSaeng came in. Marmy gave a mew of greeting, but remained firmly seated on Yuri's lap.

"Why are you home? I thought you were all excited about taking Action on a little romp about the city," Yuri mentioned.

YeongSaeng shrugged. "It just didn't seem as fun when two members were taken out of the equation."

"Two? Dara's got me under house arrest, but who else is out?"

"Donghae," YeongSaeng said slowly, watching Jay's reaction carefully. "He's with MinYeon, she got caught in the rain yesterday too."

Yuri digested the information for a minute, thinking about the delicate constitution of a girl like MinYeon. "Of course, Donghae would want to take care of his sick girlfriend."

"And the idiot won't answer his cell phone, so he doesn't even know that you're sick too," YeongSaeng grumbled, as he reached out a hand to scratch Marmy behind the ear.  
Hurrying to speak, Yuri said, "That's good though, I wouldn't want him to worry." Then eyeing YeongSaeng carefully, she changed the subject. "You haven't given KyuJeon his necklace yet, have you?"

"He's busy today," YeongSaeng replied evasively. "Besides, I wanted to give you a break, facing an angry Kyu isn't something you should have to do when sick."

"I'm not that sick," Yuri retorted.

YeongSaeng had to smile as Marmy swatted his rescuer in the face with his long tail at the proclamation. "I'll give it to him tonight, I promise."

"What's the schedule for tomorrow? Just so I can have a head's up on how to avoid his wrath," Yuri asked.

"We're free for the morning, but then we have the press conference for the album release," YeongSaeng explained. "Now, I'll take this, and you get some more sleep, okay? We need you to be all better before the conference so you'll look nice in the pictures."

YeongSaeng took her empty food tray and left her to get her rest. Yuri fell asleep again quickly, with Marmy adjusting himself to curl up in the crook of her arm. The next time she woke up half of QuaszauR had already gone to bed. Kihun was up though, and he whipped her up a single serving of a nice hot dinner when she asked him. The three little couples Yuri had been keeping her eyes on were curled upon the couch, watching a movie. Dara and SooHyun were up too, wrapped with a mostly awake MinJi in Dara's blanket on one end of the couch.

The three of them came over to keep Yuri company as she ate, and Kihun whipped up five mugs of hot chocolate. He leaned over the breakfast bar from the kitchen with SooHyun at his shoulder as MinJi and Dara flanked Yuri. She had been very much in the center of their thoughts all day, and their protective little circle showed it. When one of their own was sick, little else mattered.

They refused to mention Donghae, who was still out with MinYeon. Not one member of QuaszauR liked MinYeon, who was hardly sick, and everyone liked Jay, who was horribly sick; the lines of conflict were clear.

When MinJi finished her hot chocolate she decided to go to bed rather than finish the movie. SooHyun and Kihun followed shortly after her. The space on the couch where Dara had left her blanket was still free, so Yuri and her fake girlfriend joined the rest of QuaszauR's couples to finish the movie.

There had only been about twenty minutes left in it, so Yuri never got a good idea of the plot. Knowing that JiEun was the one who had decided on the title, she guessed that it was some sort of action adventure. The huge gun-fight finale supported her thesis as well.

After the movie, Chansung, JiEun, SeungMi, and Jaebi went to bed. Jaebi and SeungMi could be heard talking about an outing to the zoo in the morning, possibly with Jinki and JongHyun again. It made Yuri smile.

KyuJeon towed YeongSaeng to the kitchen. It was time for his signature dessert, which was really more of plain old ice cream with an overdose of chocolate and caramel syrups, and cookie crumbs, and peanut butter and chocolate chips, but it was KyuJeon's favorite food on the planet. While he watched YeongSaeng working, he could hear Dara talking quietly with Jay. Their conversation was just soft enough so as to frustrate him immensely as he tried to overhear.

Dara was frustrated as well, but for a completely different reason. She'd seen Yuri texting throughout the movie, and there was no doubt as to who was supposed to be receiving the messages.

"Even if he is with MinYeon, he should answer your text messages," Dara grumbled. "I understand him ignoring YeongSaeng's pestering, but you're different."

"No, I'm not," Yuri said sadly. "I'm just like him, at least in Donghae's eyes. And MinYeon's his girlfriend; he's just being a good boyfriend."

Dara continued to grumble incoherently.

After a moment, Yuri said, "I have to let go of him soon anyhow. This was probably a good wake up call."

"I think we should tell him."

"No!" Yuri was horrified at the thought. "He trusts Jay, imagine how disappointed he'll be if he figures out that I'm not who I said I was? He'd hate us both, and I'm sure he'd be mad at anyone who _did_ know. Even if we tell him everything, the whole group would have to face horrible consequences! I won't drag you guys into that kind of a thing."

Dara replied, "Most of us would stir that up voluntarily for you. Sort of like how Jaebi was about to tear your head off, but apologizing to SeungMi was more important to him than killing you, Donghae will forgive us once he realizes that he's in love with you."

"Jaebi and SeungMi are Jaebi and SeungMi," Yuri said for the hundredth time. "What worked on them won't work on anyone else, Donghae in particular. He has his little bubble; if it pops, he'll go into a defensive downward spiral. The only way things could have worked out is if he'd known from the start, but really even that's if-y because he would have seen me completely differently and MinYeon would have kept him a mile away from me."

"That doesn't mean anything," Dara said definitively.

"It means everything. Besides, I should back off anyway. He'll notice when my brother and I trade places if I get too close to him and then turn suddenly shy around my hyungnim in two weeks," Yuri said.

Dara wouldn't have that. "You can't just give it up! You like him; even if it's just friendship, you like it. You can't just let all that go! If I had to I could understand why you wouldn't want to pursue him, but giving up even the friendship? Your brother can deal with the consequences when he gets here, how bad could they really be?"

"The only reason I wasn't found out the moment I stepped onstage was because none of you had seen Jay in a month," Yuri said. "He'll be found out in a minute if I don't start isolating myself from the people who don't know. And Donghae especially, because he likes to walk between YeongSaeng and I with an arm around our shoulders; Jay's not short enough for that."

"And what's your plan for covering up the height thing? Hmm? Magically grow to your brother's height before he gets here?"

Yuri almost grinned. "Yes, actually. He's not quite a foot taller than me. I'm sure we can find platform sneakers that'll make it look like I'm growing somewhere around here. Jay's actually got a pair; it's a really small heel so I'll start wearing them tomorrow."

Grumbling again, Dara said, "And I suppose you'll want me to help you find taller ones?"

"You're an angel."

Dara shrugged it off, in a very self-praising manner, "I do what I can." Then more serious she added, "How are you going to explain the sudden three-steps back policy you're gonna pull?"

"I don't know," Yuri confessed. She didn't have a single reason to be suddenly disengaged from them and everything she could think up to explain Jay's withdrawal into himself, such as Yuri being sick, would only make the rest of QuaszauR all the more eager to support her. She thought for a while longer as Dara rambled off other possibilities that resulted in the same outcome as if Yuri had gotten sick.

"KyuJeon's gonna be mad at me tomorrow," Yuri remarked suddenly, eyeing the pair talking in the kitchen as YeongSaeng messed with a bottle of chocolate syrup. "We could make it worse. And when Jay gets here, _then_ we could patch things up, and get KyuJeon to forgive _Jay_ instead of me."

Having missed most of what Yuri had just said Dara asked with a sigh, "Why is KyuJeon going to be mad at you?"

"There's this thing about necklaces . . . and Tuesdays . . . and let's just say it's not going to go well for Jay," Yuri said, yawning.

Dara peeked over her shoulder at KyuJeon, who was just beginning to dig into his ice cream treat. "Then you should probably get a good night's sleep, KyuJeon's going to literally be _chasing_ you down tomorrow if it's as bad as you say."

"I don't want to go to bed yet," Yuri said, fiddling with the remote that had fallen into her control when JiEun had left their little movie watching group. She flicked over to a re-run of a drama she'd never really followed as Dara sighed.

"You want to wait for him," she said, knowingly.

This time, Yuri admitted it to herself as well as to her questioner. "Yeah, I guess so."

"Then I'll wait with you," Dara replied. She wrapped her arms around Yuri's waist with a laugh saying, "I'm not letting you crush your true love alone. Besides, you can say your girlfriend made you stay up, if it comes to that."

"Thanks Dara," Yuri said; her gratitude heavy in her voice. Dara was really the best friend she'd ever had.

They shifted positions a bit, because though Dara was going to stay out on the couch with Yuri, she didn't really have enough stamina to actually stay up. She was asleep by the second commercial break. Yuri didn't have much more in terms of energy, and she was asleep beside her fake girlfriend before the show had ended.

Meanwhile, YeongSaeng had kept KyuJeon from hurting himself as he tried to overhear the others' conversation by striking up his own. As he and KyuJeon shared the enormous bowl of chocolate soup with a little ice cream mixed in, he'd managed to bring up the topic of random presents. He was good at the sort of subtlety that kind of thing required. It helped that KyuJeon wasn't the least bit suspicious.

When he let the necklace spill from his hand at the conclusion of what he said was a new magic trick, the awe on KyuJeon's face was obvious, and very satisfying. "I saw this in a store window the other day and I thought why not? KyuJeon will probably like it, I'll get it just because it's Tuesday."

This however did not have the desired effect. KyuJeon's head whipped in the direction of Jay and Dara, sheer horror in his expression. He launched from his position at the breakfast bar and raced over. Upon discovering that the pair was most soundly asleep, and having nothing against Dara, KyuJeon hesitated. He looked back at YeongSaeng who was watching him with worried eyes. After a moment of indecision, he ducked his head in shame and hurried to lock himself in his bedroom.

YeongSaeng stared ruefully after him. His focus only returned to the common room as his eyes caught sight of a sleepy Marmy wandering out of Jay's room and jumping onto the couch with Jay and Dara. Looking from the sleeping figure of Jay to the dangling silver of the necklace in his hand, YeongSaeng sighed. Then he let the necklace pour into his hand and tucked it into his pocket. He scraped the last of the chocolate out of the bowl he and KyuJeon had shared and put it in the dishwasher.

Starting the machine he turned back to face Jay and Dara on the couch, just as Donghae walked through the door. YeongSaeng jumped at the sudden movement in the still dormitory. Glancing at the clock above the stove, he mentioned, "You're home pretty early, considering."

Donghae heaved himself down on one of the stools at the breakfast bar, massaging his temples. "You're just up late," Donghae said. He'd escaped MinYeon as soon as he'd been able to, but MinYeon was a terribly delicate girl and she'd needed his support the whole time she was subject to the ministrations of the doctors and nurses in the hospital. He would have to go back tomorrow as well, to help her survive another day of the horrible place, and probably to help her get home when she was released.

It didn't occur to him that this had been the first time he'd ever mentally termed his respite from his girlfriend as an _escape_. His head was hurting so much he didn't even notice KyuJeon's absence from YeongSaeng's side. YeongSaeng, who wasn't in any mood to put up with the least of his best friend's weaknesses, mentioned, "You know, MinYeon wasn't the only one who got caught in the rain yesterday."

"She only got damp, running out to her car," Donghae grumbled.

"Jay got soaked through," YeongSaeng pressed.

This got Donghae's attention like a gunshot, the consequences of the sound being far more dramatic than the noise itself. "Is he sick?"

"Worst fever I've ever seen him with," YeongSaeng replied.

Donghae was too riled up to note that Jay had never been sick with a fever since he'd joined up with QuaszauR. "Where is he now?" His first guess was the hospital, and if that had been the case he'd have been more than willing to grab his bike and head out the moment he knew for certain.

"On the couch with Dara and Marmy," YeongSaeng said simply.

Donghae was out of his seat in a second, but he paused asking, "Marmy?"

"That cat you brought in from last night. We're apparently keeping him, and apparently his name is Marmalade," YeongSaeng explained.

Making a mental note to be angry at Jay later, Donghae crept closer to the sleeping trio. Actually, the cat wasn't asleep, but it blatantly refused to look at Donghae as the singer knelt by the couch and placed his hand on Jay's forehead. "He's still got a little fever," Donghae said, worriedly.

"Don't worry too much," YeongSaeng said. "While you were _completely_ unreachable, his girlfriend was taking very good care of him, and of the cat."

YeongSaeng stood watching his best friend stare intently at the trio sleeping on the couch, well duo. Marmy was still a wrong move away from sinking his claws into Donghae. The singer was far too focused on his sleeping friends to take any notice, his hand flitting with concern across Jay's unnaturally warm skin.

As the fingers of one hand softly traced Jay's features, those of the other balled into a fist in frustration. Jay shouldn't be out here on the couch! He should at the least be in bed, if not in the hospital. Donghae was briefly furious with Dara for not having made Jay take better care of himself. It was simply an expression of frustration however, as he knew well that if Jay didn't want to stay in bed, nothing could get him to.

"If you just stare at them, nothing is going to happen," YeongSaeng said dryly. Then softer, in response to the worrying crease on Donghae's forehead, he added, "You already have a headache, you should just go to bed. Figure out what you want to do tomorrow, tomorrow."

Fixing the blanket that was covering Jay and Dara, Donghae earned himself a hiss from Marmy, who did not appreciate being moved. Then Donghae stood and just stared at them, feeling a mix of concern and frustration. That he hadn't known Jay was sick, far sicker than MinYeon, irritated him horribly. After a moment, taking YeongSaeng's advice, he made his way to his room to try and get rid of his headache.

When he would emerge from his room in the morning his head would feel only slightly better, but after an hour or of watching Jay sleep it would be soothed enough to let him head back to bed for a few hours and rest up enough to face the day ahead. During his breakfast vigil, Donghae would discover that Jay's fever had gone almost completely during the night, and that Marmy grudgingly respected his concern for the sickened rescuer on the couch. Cat and singer would share a cup of strongly creamed tea in the early morning hours before anyone else woke up, but as they went their separate ways the night before, Donghae simply shut his bedroom door without a thought.

YeongSaeng was about to join him when he thought of something. He hurried to the kitchen and grabbed a sticky note. After scribbling a message, he stuck the note to the palm of Jay's hand and then went to his own room for the night.


	12. Conflict Clears the Air, sort of

Yuri found the note right away when she woke up. It wasn't on her hand anymore, but it was easily visible. During the night Marmy had hopped down to investigate the sticky note and the sticky part of it had gotten attached to his fur. The note was perched on the side of his head as he slept on Yuri's chest.

_You're definitely going to want to avoid Kyu today, and Donghae has a headache so if you happen to have any more of that tea . . . Now would be a great time to brew some. –YeongSaeng._

It took Yuri a moment to comprehend what was going on.

With morning grogginess and a slight headache herself, remembering why she was on the couch with Dara and a cat took a moment, especially as she'd been sick yesterday and lucidity was fleeting at best.

When she had finally worked out everything that was going on, she carefully slipped out from under Dara. Shower first, then getting used to walking in sneakers that had a heel hidden in them, and then Yuri was able to whip up a batch of tea, using a few more drops of the serum she'd been given by the café owner. She added one to her own tea, as her headache wasn't that bad, but the prospect of having KyuJeon yelling at her made the medical intervention seem well-warranted.

She put Donghae's tea on the counter with a plate on top of it. Marmy was eyeing the beverage with great interest as he sat watching Yuri make it. He was well behaved about not knocking the plate off after a stern warning from Yuri; she actually found it rather odd how well he seemed to understand her.

Taking a sticky note off the pad on the fridge, Yuri wrote another wacky note to Donghae. This one included a cutesy version of Luke Skywalker and a few headache-inducing Storm-Troopers. She wanted it to be the craziest note she'd ever written, because it was the last one she expected to send to Donghae. When it was finished, crammed into the sticky note so as to be nearly illegible, she crept carefully to Donghae's room and stuck the note on the inside of the door at his eyelevel.

She couldn't help herself from tip toeing over to Donghae's bed and leaning over to place a cool hand on his forehead in hopes of soothing some of his pain. His expression was fairly relaxed, but Yuri could see the faint signs of high stress carved into his features. There were creases at the corners of his eyes and along his forehead, and his jaw was set firmly against the world even as he slept.

Donghae felt her touch in his sleep and reached up to grab the hand she'd placed on his forehead as he shifted how he laid across his mattress. His grasp was firm and Yuri was pulled forward to leaning over him as he pulled her hand to his chest and held her arm like child and a favored teddy bear. Yuri let him hold it for a long while that felt much too short, as she warred internally with herself, both panicking and pleased over the situation. She was being greedy. Taking one last liberty as Donghae slept, Yuri gently pressed her forehead to his as she maneuvered her arm free of his grasp, willing his headache to go away and shivering with a sense of pride in her secretive audacity at getting so close. She didn't actually kiss his cheek before she quietly made her way back outside, but she seriously thought about it and she turned to let her cheek rest against his and breathed in the scent hanging in his hair and at the collar of his pajama-like t-shirt for a long moment.

It was only after she was done with everything that Yuri gave Marmy a farewell pat on the head, and headed out to breakfast. She gave the man at the café a bright smile when she walked in. "Good Morning, Ajussi!"

"You seem even more chipper than usual," he replied, handing over a fresh chocolate chip muffin, a glass of each orange juice and milk, and an iced mocha before she even asked. "Has something good happened?"

"Nope, actually I'm in pretty big trouble," Yuri explained sheepishly, wondering just how apparently she was pleased with her secret intrusion of Donghae's room. "I'm just gonna eat this quickly and get out of here, if anyone comes looking for me, tell them I was never here," she added with a wink.

The man laughed. "You've been pretty popular lately," he said. "I'll try my best, but that one guy who keeps coming in after you've disappeared is pretty scary."

"Who?"

"Good looking, a bit over a foot taller than you, looks like he's got a suit on under that hoodie of his," the owner said.

Yuri nodded, guessing who it was immediately. "I don't think he'll be the one looking for me, at least not today," she said. "The main person I'm worried about is shorter, and much less patient; and he'll probably be very antsy while he's looking for me."

With a sigh as he handed Yuri her change, the owner said, "Did you do something?"

"Sorta," Yuri replied. "Thanks again, Ajussi!"

She raced though her breakfast and headed out to wander around in the park. This time she didn't have to worry about watching the clock, because it was quite unlikely that she'd miss the five pm deadline for getting back to the dorms in time for the press conference preparations. The park however did make her think about something else. It reminded her about Donghae's warnings, as it was here that he'd first told her to make sure someone knew where she was. And she'd forgotten, again.

She'd even _written_a _note_, and forgotten to put where she was going in it. Apparently, she would never learn.

Figuring that the less he worried about her, the less she'd be on his mind, and therefore easier to avoid, she texted, _I've been kicked out again, this time by KyuJeon. I'll be fine alone, so don't worry!_

She was a little disappointed when she didn't receive a reply, but she assumed that either he still wasn't awake or he was already with MinYeon, whom Yuri speculated was still in the hospital. As heart crushing as it was, Donghae's devotion to his girlfriend was good in the long run. Yuri knew that she was going to have to let him go anyway, and knowing that she'd never had any kind of chance at winning him over made that thought easier to bear, though her crush on him was stronger than ever.

The time slipped away as Yuri wandered though Seoul, watching the sun's reflection bouncing off all the shining surfaces of the city. It was probably mid morning when Dara called, but Yuri didn't check her iPod to confirm before she answered. "Where are you?" Dara said before even letting Yuri say hello.

"I'm around," Yuri said vaguely, trying to collect her bearings as she hadn't been paying any attention to where she was going as she wandered.

"Give me directions, we're going shopping!"

Ten minutes later, Yuri was in Dara's big white Escalade. "I figured Donghae wouldn't be around to keep you from dying of boredom while KyuJeon was on the hunt, so we're going to have another girl's day out! First mission: shoes!"

"Thanks Dara," Yuri said, relieved despite herself.

"What exactly did you do to KyuJeon? He's angrier than I've _ever_ seen him," Dara said. She was only able to be so blasé about his rage because she'd seen Yuri's little plots work out in the end before.

Yuri shrugged. "Nothing too much. I just got YeongSaeng to say something that made KyuJeon think I'd told him everything."

"And by everything, you mean?"

"You know, everything that's completely obvious about how he's in love with YeongSaeng," Yuri replied with a grin.

They shared a laugh; one that turned into an uncontrollable fit of giggles as each kept thinking of new little details that really did make everything obvious. They continued with random spurts of laughter long into their rounds of shopping. It wasn't that hard to find the kind of shoes that Yuri needed to blend in her height with her brother's. And she even got to try on a few gorgeous pairs of heels, with the pretext of having Jay's girlfriend make him do it. Dara actually bought a few of the pairs that suited her especially well, promising to let her take them home when she and Jay made the switch.

Throughout the day, they were forced to periodically ignore KyuJeon's calls. Dara turned her phone off outright, but Yuri kept hers on. She wanted to be able to answer if Donghae sent a message, regardless of the fact that she was supposed to be distancing herself from him. He'd strictly told her to answer _immediately _when he called, after all. Dara empathized and didn't comment.

KyuJeon however, on the other side of the city as he was, swore at his cell phone more than he had ever even complained about the overly intense schedule QuaszauR often had to bear with. He couldn't even bear to look in the direction of YeongSaeng's room when he had woken up this morning and was now frantically searching every place he'd ever seen Jay in.

Once he'd run out of places to look, finding Donghae was his next move. That one was fairly easy. After not getting a reply from a text message saying that Jay'd been hit by a car, KyuJeon could guess that he was with MinYeon. And she was either at her apartment, the hospital, or JYG headquarters on a morning like this. She wasn't at work, because KyuJeon had already searched the place looking for Jay and he hadn't seen her there. And if she'd gotten out of working, she probably wasn't just home, so KyuJeon tried the hospital.

Sure enough he found her room there fairly easily, and with a little bit of convincing to get past the security in place to keep fans out, KyuJeon found himself face to face with Donghae. Jay was still nowhere in sight.

"How do you not know where he is!" KyuJeon shouted in frustration once Donghae denied knowing anything. "You _always_ know where he is!"

Donghae was instantly worried. "What's happened?"

"I'm gonna kill him, that's what happened," KyuJeon growled.

With a rueful sigh that was most definitely affectionate, Donghae asked, "What did he do to you and YeongSaeng?"

"He . . . He . . . it doesn't matter, I just need to find him," KyuJeon replied weakly.

MinYeon was very angry with Donghae's attention being shifted away from her and she interjected, "Are you sure he's worth being found? What could he possibly have done to make you run all over the city so that you smell worse than a cow?"

Her comment had the opposite effect of what she'd wanted, sending Donghae's thoughts even more towards Jay as he said with an affectionate and knowing smile, "Oh, you'd be very surprised at what Jay can do when he feels like it."

"So, tell me where he is, if you understand that much," KyuJeon whined.

Donghae replied, "I really don't know where he is, you could try waiting for him to come home. He has to eventually."

Grumbling KyuJeon ceded defeat after Donghae repeated that he didn't know where Jay was a few more times. Slinking off, KyuJeon went to stake out a spot outside the dorms. As soon as the hospital door closed, MinYeon poured out her frustrations on Donghae, "He's right about how you always know where that Jay kid is. He's practically glued to your side!"

"I just look after him," Donghae responded. "He needs a little help."

MinYeon crossed her arms petulantly. "You could open a daycare with the kind of care you're giving him, how old is he anyway?"

"Just a year younger than we are, but he's extremely new to this business," Donghae explained.

"And you're just being a good hyung? By giving your dongsaeng more attention than you give your girlfriend?" she replied with a pout that Donghae noted wasn't half as cute on her face as she thought it was.

Donghae ran his fingers gently over the side of her face in the way he knew she particularly favored. Brushing back a few long strands of her hair, Donghae said, "You know I don't give anyone else the kind of attention I give you."

MinYeon remained stubbornly sure of her assertion for another few minutes, but Donghae was very convincing and soon she was back in the center of her perfect little world. It didn't last very long though, as the very person she was miffed at Donghae for waltzed through the door with his detestable girlfriend perhaps twenty minutes after her ego was appeased.

She was not pleased to see how Donghae's mood blatantly brightened as Jay and Dara come in with a fanfare. She was even less pleased when Dara plopped a few gift boxes down on her bed and dragged Donghae outside, leaving MinYeon alone with the little home-wrecker. The one thing that she did admit was that Donghae had been right: Jay on his own was a pretty pathetic sight.

For the ten minutes that MinYeon was alone with him he sort of babbled more or less incoherently about how he and Dara had picked up a few things that were supposedly good for the sick. Yuri was on complete auto-pilot, her mouth running from a command that she didn't consciously give. When Dara had dragged her into the hospital in the first place, she hadn't known what was happening until she'd found herself alone with MinYeon.

The conversation between them may have been unexciting at best, but the one between Dara and Donghae was extremely animated. Though she was all smiles and support for Yuri while they were shopping, the moment she got Donghae alone she was on a rampage. "Why haven't you been answering your phone? Do you have any idea how many times I've tried to call you today?" She demanded.

"You know how it is," Donghae replied, taken aback. "When I'm with MinYeon I don't take calls. I'll be back in time for the press conference, don't worry."

Huffing, Dara crossed her arms and grumbled over the chatter of the nurses down the hall. "It's not you I'm worried about."

"What do you mean?" Donghae was thoroughly confused.

"Jay got kicked out of the dorm again," she said.

It took all of three seconds for Donghae to connect the dots. "KyuJeon. What exactly happened?"

"I don't know, he won't tell me the details," Dara complained. "And he was perfectly willing to spend the entire day completely alone. When I asked if he wanted company he told me to go shopping with the rest of Sweet. I'm telling you it's not healthy."

This did have Donghae worried, but Dara didn't let him say anything before she added, "And you should really check your text messages, even when you're with MinYeon. You don't have to respond, but you should at least know when the person you've been taking such good care of _needs_ your care for once."

"Jay knows about what I do in regards to calls when I'm with MinYeon," Donghae defended.

"He's different that the rest of us, and you know it," Dara snapped.

Her violent reaction had Donghae very confused. "I do regret that I wasn't there to help him with KyuJeon, but he does have you for that. And MinYeon is always my first priority. I don't get why you're so upset about this."

"I'm upset because Yuri isn't!"

"Yuri?"

Dara realized her slip and quickly salvaged her argument as best she could, "Of course, you tease Jay into thinking he's important to you, and then you drop off the map when he actually needs you? Yuri should be the one here yelling at you, but she's in Japan, so I'm taking her place."

"Jay _is_ important to me, I haven't been faking any concern for him," Donghae announced, angrily.

"You haven't been acting like it today," Dara retorted. "He's really depressed, and I don't think that it's only because of whatever scrape he's gotten himself into with KyuJeon."

"What's wrong?" Donghae asked, concern overriding his frustration with Dara.

She however only continued to fume. "I don't know, he won't tell me anything. You're more important to him that you realize; you have _no_ idea how much he depends on you. And if you want him to stay how he is now, instead of closing himself up back into that shell we first found him in, you'd better figure out _exactly_ how important he is to you so that you can do something before he starts thinking that it's too late."

Dara's challenge shut Donghae up for a solid minute as he processed it. Dara took the opportunity to calm down a bit. She'd never gotten herself worked up like that before. The lengths she was going to showed how much she liked Yuri, how she wanted to protect her friend more than she didn't want to upset her bandmate.

When she was calm enough to refrain from shouting again, Dara said dismissively, "I'm going out to the car, tell Jay to meet me there." She refused to look at him as she marched down the hall, calling back over her shoulder, "Oh, and if you tell him I said any of this, you'll ruin both our relationships with him; that I can guarantee." The nurses stared after her, their gazes occasionally flicking back to Donghae, as they fretted about what they should do in this situation.

They saw Donghae run his fingers though his hair, staring after the high-tempered little girl and looking into the hospital room the pair had come out of. He pulled out his phone and hit the speed dial for Jay. He'd set it as the key with the letter J rather than assigning it a numerical value.

Immediately Jay answered. Donghae grinned at his dedication to following instructions as he called the younger singer outside. Jay, confused and slightly anxious, slid though the door in a few short seconds after saying a quick and overly polite goodbye to MinYeon.

"What's up?"

Donghae put his hand on Yuri's forehead, and then his forehead against the back of his hand before she could even register that Dara wasn't there anymore. The motion stopped her from processing that fact for a long moment. When she was about to ask where Dara had gone, Donghae had leaned back and was already talking.

"How are you feeling? You were sick yesterday, weren't you?" he asked, his hand drifting across Jay's cheek. He didn't have a fever, but his skin still felt warm.

Yuri brushed his hand off. "I'm fine. It was nothing. Where's Dara?"

"She's outside," Donghae replied in the same, answering-because-a-question-was-asked, blasé manner as Yuri had responded to his question. "What's happening with KyuJeon?"

"Nothing," Yuri responded shortly. "Why's Dara outside?"

"She didn't feel like staying here. KyuJeon's looking for you, so something must have happened," Donghae pointed out. They weren't actually answering any of each other's questions and it was clear that frustrations were building between them.

Yuri was the first to give up on getting information. But she wasn't brazen enough to simply leave as Dara had. She stood in silence and waited for Donghae to either let her go or say something she felt like responding to. Donghae wasn't quite fuming but he was heading that way.

"I can't help you if you don't tell me what's going on," Donghae sighed as he stared hard at Jay, grabbing the young singer by the shoulders as gently as he could manage in his frustration. "If something is going on, you should _tell_ me," Donghae almost pleaded.

Jay had shut down again. It was strange; after all the progress Donghae had made with him, Jay was shutting himself down again. Maybe Dara was right about Jay regressing. Whatever was happening, Donghae was sure it wasn't good.

Yuri hesitated; she wanted to explain the whole situation with KyuJeon. It was nice having someone on her side in times like this. Dara was enough though, and Donghae had someone else to worry about. His concern for her was surely that of a worried family member and that thought made it easier for Yuri to pretend that it didn't hurt to push him away. "You shouldn't worry so much," she said in the lightest tone she could reason as acceptable for the situation. "At least not about me, I'll be fine. You should be taking care of your girlfriend."

"I'm not worried about MinYeon right now," Donghae barked.

"Yes, you are, I know you better than that. She's your girlfriend, and you care about her," Yuri said. "And I should go find mine, _now,_" she added as Donghae remained standing in her way.

His hands dropped from her shoulders but he didn't step out of her way in the hall.

She moved around him. He caught her arm before she was out of range, but only just. His grip was enough to make her jerk to a stop. "I care about her, but I also care about you," Donghae said. "You're a part of my family that MinYeon can't touch. Every member of QuaszauR is just as important to me as she is, and she knows it."

"You should tell KyuJeon that, he's the one that's upset," Yuri said.

Donghae grumbled a bit, letting Jay go. If he wouldn't say anything, there was nothing Donghae could do. The reason he'd made any progress to begin with was because he'd been patient and hadn't pried. "KyuJeon's going to be waiting for you when you get home, he's going to want to talk to you," Donghae warned as Jay headed down the hall.

Donghae gave a smile to the nurses. They were still concerned. Their understanding of the situation was limited at best, and it was their job to be concerned.

Then he went back inside to face a disgusted MinYeon. "Did you know that kid has your _Beautiful_ as his ringtone?"

"Really?"

She was quite miffed. She was in no mood to be soothed, as Donghae picked up on quickly. He settled down to ride out her storm; he'd learned that it was all he could do a long time ago. As he waited, Donghae began to think. Three napkins and a dry pen later, nearly half of that song JongHyun and YoungJae were waiting for had been slipped into Donghae's pocket.

By then MinYeon had calmed down enough for him to hold a short conversation with her, one that made her feel important. After that, it was time for him to head back to the dorms for QuaszauR's press conference. MinYeon whined, but she knew the business and was eventually convinced to let him go. "But come back after words, won't you? I'm going home tonight and I think I'll need some help."

"I'll see what I can do," Donghae promised with as much enthusiasm as he could muster. Nothing was looking too bright at the moment, with Dara angry at him and Jay regressing. The only thing that Donghae was pleased about was that when he was asked about his new solo at the press conference and otherwise, he could actually answer a few of the questions.

Meanwhile, Dara's Escalade had gotten the pair home in no time. The conversation between the two was just as chipper as ever, as if nothing had happened in the hospital. It suited the both of them just fine.

When they spotted KyuJeon waiting out in the little park in front of the dorm building as they pulled into the parking garage, Yuri said, "I'm gonna have to talk to him. Could you get YeongSaeng out front in about five minutes?"

At Dara's nod, Yuri jumped out of the car and met KyuJeon at the mouth of the garage. She steered him around back to the larger park as he collected his thoughts. Throughout the day he'd let them get so scattered by his nerves that when he finally confronted the object of his fury, he didn't have any idea what to say.

"You told him," he started off lamely.

Yuri decided to help him along. "I told him what? Everything about you?"

"You ruined it, you ruined everything!" KyuJeon said. "You broke your promise!"

"Did I now?" The plan had been to make the split between her and KyuJeon worse, but seeing his face screwed up with confusion and emotion, Yuri couldn't help but try to mend what she'd broken. Though, she was not above trying to push KyuJeon just a _bit_ more before she fixed everything.

KyuJeon fumed, letting forth a torrent of words that Yuri didn't even try to catch. The gist of it though was impossible to miss. When he'd gone through with his venting, Yuri let him sit for a minute in silence. "Have you even talked to him since he said that?"

"Of course not! How could I? He must hate me," KyuJeon wailed.

Yuri gave him a look and said dryly, "Oh yes, because _that_ makes perfect sense. He bought you a necklace, invariably he must _hate_ you."

"He was just teasing or something, it's YeongSaeng," KyuJeon replied. "He was trying to make it seem lighter than it was, because he's too nice to just out and say he hates me."

Yuri said soothingly, "He doesn't hate you. I promise. I was there to help him pick out the necklace."

"You were there?"

"I'm guessing that it never crossed your mind that he really bought it just because it was Tuesday, did it?" Yuri continued at KyuJeon's murderous look, "Okay, so he didn't, but still. I can honestly say that he bought the necklace purely because he wanted to get something for you. He likes you, really. That's why I gave him the same line I gave you."

"But I never used it," KyuJeon said, confused.

Yuri nodded comfortingly. "Which is why I could tell YeongSaeng about it, _without_ breaking my promise. He doesn't know a thing from me. I wanted to show you that he really does like you, because _really_, he _does_ like you," she said carefully.

KyuJeon stood quietly beside Jay, staring at him intently for what seemed like the longest time. Jay didn't flinch. He gave KyuJeon a reassuring smile and whispered, "He actually bought you a necklace _before_ you bought him the ring, which I'm guessing you still haven't given to him."

"How could I? It's not like I can just waltz up to him with a present like that," KyuJeon wailed.

Yuri said, "But you've been wearing your half of the set since we bought them, so you can say you've just gotten YeongSaeng's. He doesn't have to know they came as a set. You could give it to him today. Say it's an apology for making him worry about you today."

KyuJeon was startled by her statement. "YeongSaeng was worried?"

"You haven't said a word to him _all day_," Yuri said loudly, trying to get past his cute little idiot's haze of non-comprehension. "Of _course_ he's bugging out. He has no idea why you're avoiding him like the plague." _Hardly any idea,_ she amended in her mind.

Really, all YeongSaeng knew was that this was Jay's fault. From that he could assume a lot, but it wasn't like Yuri had actually explained the situation to him. She had promised KyuJeon after all.

As KyuJeon fought to rationalize this statement in his mind, he'd never considered that perhaps YeongSaeng didn't hate him, Yuri leaned in close and whispered, "I'll tell you a secret. Have you noticed the necklace that YeongSaeng's been wearing since, when was it? Monday? Sunday? Whatever, it doesn't really matter. That necklace is part of a set, the other half was what he tried to give to you."

This struck KyuJeon at exactly the right moment. He was open to Yuri's second suggestion of using the ring as an apology. "You could say we just went out to get it, right now on our little walk."

KyuJeon was taken in by her suggestion. Though he still had some concerns, "What do we say I'm apologizing for? I don't want to tell him anything!"

Yuri rolled her eyes. "The whole point of this was to show you that he liked you too. Isn't not-telling him anything kind of going against the grain here? It would make more sense to just tell him everything."

"You wouldn't! You promised!" KyuJeon wailed.

Relenting Yuri said, "Fine, I won't tell him anything. But you get to figure out what you're apologizing for on your own. Look, there he is now! Dara and I are gonna see if we can get a pre-conference snack."

Yuri led KyuJeon into the open space where he could easily be seen, keeping her arm around him the whole time. Once YeongSaeng had caught sight of them she removed her support and skipped off to join Dara.

The pair that constituted the first official couple of QuaszauR headed upstairs to let the unexpected not-quite couple of QuaszauR figure themselves out alone. Yuri went straight to the kitchen, snooping around for a food-type-substance that she could recognize as snack food. Kihun wasn't a big supporter of the stuff, so there wasn't much of anything around. She did find a package of shrimp-flavored crackers, but while the adventurous Jay would have tried them, she preferred to let them stay in their neat little package. Dara helped her out by proffering gummies and a fruit 'gel' that Yuri discovered was like rather thick Jell-O with actual fruit in it.

She wasn't allowed to eat her snack in peace however as the girls of QuaszauR Sweet were perched around her at the breakfast bar, hounding her with questions about KyuJeon and YeongSaeng. SooHyun had noticed the pair of them before, which meant that MinJi and JiEun were also aware of it, though they hadn't actually guessed it for themselves. Part of SooHyun's insight came from having known YeongSaeng before he met KyuJeon, the change in him had been slow but fairly obvious to someone as detail-oriented as the female leader. SeungMi hadn't had any idea until KyuJeon started freaking out about Jay's interference; if Yuri had done something, there was only one reason for it.

The good news about the interrogation, for Yuri's stomach at least, was that the girls were on her side. They'd figured that she wouldn't have done anything that wasn't necessary, and their questions were mostly curiosity as compared to the gut wrenching animosity they'd displayed so long ago with Jaebi. Yuri was able to finish her snack and feel like she could keep it down, just in time for Yuna to show up.

Her commanding air could be felt even before she walked through the door, Manager Ma following behind. Yuri gave them both a smile, they'd no doubt heard the news of Jay's impending return around the same time she had. Yuna gave a quick nod, but Manager Ma seemed like he'd missed the memo.

Yuna paid him no mind as she collected the group of popstars, making sure each was ready for the conference. She kept pressing the issue of dressing appropriately, within the theme of the album, as opposed to her attitude at the previous press conference. This one was for the album's actual release and therefore more important.

JiEun was forced to change, twice. She had such a laid back personality that the severity of the occasion missed its mark with her. The only reason she got it right the third time around was that Chansung whispered something about a particular dress he liked in her ear before Yuna kicked her back to her bedroom.

Unlike JiEun, Yuri got Yuna's seal of approval right off the bat. Mainly because she'd worked so hard at learning how to be Jay that this had been no different for her; Yuri had found the perfect outfit in the form of almost exactly what she'd worn for the first day of the music video shoot. The only difference was that these clothes fit _Jay_ rather than her and she had the heart necklace Donghae had given her on.

When Yuna shepherded them down to the vans, Yuri dragged Dara, SeungMi, and Jaebi, into the far back of one of the vans immediately. She wanted to talk with them about what she was supposed to say in regards to Jay's solos, because the mysterious special choreography the fans had been promised was still locked away in her brother's head in Japan. It seemed like getting suggestions and feedback from them was perfectly logical, at least to Yuri.

Every other member of QuaszauR, including her three confidants, found it not only surprising, but downright worrisome. When Donghae's motorcycle rolled into the driveway with the perfect timing he always provided, only a few of the members were left loitering around outside as Yuna made final checks of the dorm for any forgotten necessity.

Donghae was expecting to pick Jay up as usual, taking him the long way on his bike. As he drove up to the dorm's loading drive, YeongSaeng was by his side instantly, a new piece of jewelry on his hand and a shyly anxious KyuJeon a few steps behind. "Jay's already in the van," he said concerned.

"What?" Donghae couldn't quite comprehend the implications.

"Something more than Jay's usual weirdness is going on," YeongSaeng reiterated.

Their conversation was prevented from continuing by Yuna's shouts. The remaining members scurried to get in the vans. KyuJeon and YeongSaeng wisely took the one that Jay was _not_ in. And with equal propriety, none of their bandmates said anything about Jay's actions in regards to them.

They did however, comment on Jay's behavior in regards to Donghae. What they were finding out was quite worrisome, as this change in Jay was very sudden and completely inexplicable.

The conference went well, overall. Yuri only had a few panic moments. It was almost like she was getting used to this life, the way she handled the questions that surprised her. Even though this conference was supposed to be about the album, she'd gotten an awful lot of questions about how things were going for Jay within the band. Jay's answers were as Jay-like as she could get them, but having little idea of how Jay actually felt about his work, she did worry about a few of her responses.

Donghae released a little information on his solo, much to the pleasure of everyone in the room, particularly YoungJae. The leader's sigh of relief could be felt, more than heard, throughout the entire conference room as Donghae said that _I Must Be Crazy_ would be making its debut very soon. "I just didn't want to take any of the spot-light off of our newest family member," said with a smile when he was asked why he wasn't releasing it with the album.

The finale of the conference was the premier of a ten second teaser for the _HeartQuake_ music video. Yuri was the most excited of everyone at that. It looked so incredible all edited together, making it seem sort of like the ridiculous amount of work that had gone into it was worth it for such a cool-looking final product.

After the conference, Yuri was exhausted. She'd forgotten how draining the first one had been. She actually fell asleep on the ride home, leaning up against Dara as the van jostled them about. A quick shower later, and another one of those tasty fruit gel things, and Yuri was curled up in bed.

SeungMi was the only to follow her straight to bed. The others stayed up, involved in their usual activates for the most part. They also chatted a bit about Jay's renewed weirdness, especially where Donghae was concerned. The only thing they could come up with was linking it again to the mysterious person in the hospital, who the majority of QuaszauR members still knew nothing about.

The ones that were aware that the patient wasn't the problem quietly dogged Dara with questions that she could only partially answer. It was enough to let them understand that the patient really _was_ the problem, Jay's return meant Yuri's departure.

That night, no one except Yuri went to bed feeling satisfied.

The next day, things were even worse. They had practice for their music show performance. Jay's actions at the venue, before, after, and during practice could easily be compared to the first practice they'd held after his debut. Surrounding himself with Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi at all times; keeping quiet about anything that wasn't strictly necessary for him to say; and blatantly refusing to interact with the rest of the band, were the hallmarks of Jay's behavior.

Even during the performance, which had a live audience that scared Yuri almost senseless, she kept her distance from everyone except Dara. Even Jaebi and SeungMi weren't high on her list of people to chat with. Everyone who knew why she was avoiding Donghae wanted to convince her that she didn't have to, except for Dara who patiently bore with Yuri's erratic behavior all day.

M! Countdown was their very first comeback stage with _HeartQuake_ and it went over exceptionally well. The fans were clearly overwhelmingly psyched about the band's return. They were even hugely supportive of Jay, cheering loudly despite their usual polite near silence when Yuri stepped up for her brother's solo part.

Donghae, always the professional, showed none of his worry onstage, but the moment he was off camera and out of sight from the crowd, he went in search of Jay. He was joined at the hip to Dara, and even when Donghae said that they needed to talk, Jay refused to take his arm from around Dara's shoulders. Increasingly frustrating to Donghae was Dara's support, she actually squeezed Jay's waist tighter as she stared Donghae down.

"What do you need?" Jay said, chipper as always.

"What's up with you lately? You've been acting very off for a while now," Donghae said. He was now extremely worried about Jay.

With a shrug, Yuri said, "Nothing's up."

"Are you sure? Nothing happened with whoever's in the Japanese hospital? There's _nothing_ you want to talk about?"

Dara remained silent, shifting her hands slightly on Yuri's waist as she stiffened, to remind her that she wasn't alone. "That is none of your business," Yuri replied sharply.

It wasn't the smartest thing she'd ever done in regards to her cover. It confirmed in Donghae's mind that something was happening in Japan that had Jay very worried. Which, of course, got him very concerned. "You can talk to me, you know," he said.

"I don't need too," Yuri replied, again not brilliantly.

She should have followed her past performances, simply shutting up and refusing to speak when asked a question she didn't like. Her open antagonism was just making Donghae think he'd hit the right buttons for once. He eyed Dara, thinking that she'd been Jay's confidant for whatever fiasco was unfolding.

It must have started the day after they'd finished up filming for _SunnyDae_. When he'd come home from the hospital after spending the day with MinYeon to find a sick Jay curled up with Dara on the couch. He'd checked his messages since then, and Jay had been sending a few things that ought to have gotten his attention, but nothing that seemed like it was an emergency.

However, Dara's confrontation at the hospital the next morning seemed to say otherwise. And certainly Jay's behavior now was upsetting enough to lead to the conclusion that something major was going on. For the first time, Donghae regretted his policy of not answering his phone while he was with MinYeon. Certainly, he wasn't planning on continuing with that policy in the future.

Finally Yuri began following what she ought to have done from the beginning, simply remaining quiet as Donghae asked, "What's wrong with the person in Japan? Is that why Yuri's there, instead of just spending part of the summer with friends?"

When Jay didn't answer, Donghae still assumed that his question must have encompassed what was going on, after all Yuri had never left the States before, so it must have been something terribly important that had gotten her to leave when she had. Donghae vowed to talk to Dara about it later as he let the pair of them go.

It was a quiet ride home and another fairly early bedtime for Yuri. The rest of QuaszauR was either convinced or coerced to follow suit fairly quickly afterwards, except for Dara who was Donghae's target. "What is up with Jay?" he asked just before YeongSaeng and KyuJeon had finished making sure everyone was in bed for the night.

"Nothing," Dara replied, watching as the final two slipped into their respective rooms. She'd known this conversation was coming and had spent the better part of the evening thinking about what she should say. Unfortunately, she hadn't gotten very far.

"His sister is in Japan because of the person in the hospital, isn't she?" Donghae mentioned, with only the slightest bit of question coloring his tone.

"You could say they're related somehow," Dara replied. She wasn't going to tell Yuri's secret, but she was going to get damn near close to doing so. Yuri'd called it a public service, what she'd done for the current couples of QuaszauR, and this was if anything a more vital sort of controversial aid.

Donghae went on, "How? What has he told you?"

"He's hardly told me anything," Dara replied. "We may be dating, but until you left him out to dry, he was ten times closer to you than to me."

"What changed?"

"He needed you and you ignored him, that's what changed," Dara explained. "He's really touchy about stuff like that."

Donghae thought for a long moment, Dara took the opportunity to escape before she went off and told him the whole story. The things Donghae had learned about Jay's family circumstances held his attention for the long minutes after Dara had vanished from the room. With his parents leaving him like that, alone with a little sister to take care of, finding someone who he could depend on would be a leap of faith at best. And Donghae had been trying to fill that position for so long, that just maybe he'd tried to take the jump. Only Donghae hadn't been there to catch him.

The singer, caretaker for all of QuaszauR, felt a huge wave of guilt crash over him. This was entirely his fault, Jay's regression. He was so worried about Jay right now, and the thing he was worrying over had been caused by him. And the worst thing about it was that even with MinYeon in the hospital, Donghae would much rather have been around for Jay talk to than to have been off boosting MinYeon's self-esteem while she strung out her illness.

The next day was pure torture for Donghae. He could hardly look at Jay and Dara without feeling awful. The two were just as chipper as ever, and still so closely connected so as to be practically a single person. It hurt to see how easily Jay was smiling, knowing that just underneath he must have been just as messed up and untrusting as he'd been before his debut.

Yuri meanwhile, was having a rather pleasant time on the set of Music Bank. There were so many idols she admired there, bands she'd gotten interested in once Jay had joined up with the Korean music industry. She was totally star-struck, only managing to stay semi-focused due to Dara's constant reminders. Jay was definitely going to need to take pictures with all of the amazing people he was going to meet as a popstar; Yuri could hardly imagine her brother actually being able to work with these people in the future.

She pulled though her practice with Dara and SeungMi giving her a few last pointers. And their performance, in front of yet another live audience, was almost flawless, giving Yuri an amazing high she had never felt before. The coolest part was the sudden rain of confetti and flowers that came when the winner of the Music Bank K-Chart was announced. That it was QuaszauR's _HeartQuake_ that had won only made things more exciting. It took Yuri a long few seconds to actually figure out that the band she was a part of had been the winner.

The pattern continued the next day on Music Core, with a star-struck Yuri performing fabulously and a downtrodden Donghae keeping his distance. He'd talked to YeongSaeng about what was going on, without explicitly revealing the part of Jay's past that he'd explained in confidence to Donghae. It was still enough for YeongSaeng to understand.

Neither of them could think of an appropriate way to apologize. Neither of them had been involved in something so serious before. The little spats and small fights that broke out constantly among the members all had obvious triggers and reasons they were blown out of proportion. Those were easy to mediate. This was much heavier than anything like that; if anything Jay was underplaying his reaction.

The next day nothing had changed, other than that Yuri was somehow growing accustomed to performing on the same stage as the other amazing artists on Inkigayo. When they won Mutizen, Yuri was aware of her surroundings enough to notice how teary-eyed the rest of the band got. Winning a prize like this was a big deal. It made her proud to think of how much they deserved it.

Something else she noticed as the tears began to flow from the eyes of the most emotional of QuaszauR's members was the particularly tender way Kihun cradled SooHyun's head against his shoulder. Running a quick analysis through her mind, Yuri recalled how close the two had seemed since she'd first joined their ranks. She could recall things even as far back as that first full day when she'd first learned that she would have to stay with the group more than one night and been dragged out to the radio show.

Even Dara could sense a new project coming on. This time she didn't try to warn Yuri off her course, thinking that other than her efforts being in vain regardless, Yuri needed a project to keep her spirits up while she was attempting to avoid Donghae. The one thing she _did_ do, in hopes at least slowing the matchmaker down, was direct her attention to the way YoungJae kept MinJi from collapsing onstage by physically holding her up via an arm around her waist.

Yuri was curious, but it could easily have just been a good leader taking care of his maknae. Besides she'd been standing between him and the host, and Yuri doubted the host would have caught on to her weak knees half as quickly as YoungJae. And it was better to focus on one set-up at a time, anyway.

What Dara said that _did_ get Yuri off the pursuit for a moment was that the next day they were to have a fan-meeting. To anyone else in the band it was just like the music show performances, only with just a few more songs. To Yuri it was a disaster in the making. Though the autographed posters had been made months ago, and photocopied in the thousands, it was guaranteed that they would have to at least sign the banner used as decoration for the show.

The main problem with that simple task was that Yuri had never tried to copy Jay's signature. She'd never actually seen it since he'd tweaked it to fit his personality as a star and stopped using the pathetic imitation of cursive he'd used since fourth grade. At her request Dara proffered up and old poster Jay'd signed before going to Japan.

It was an adorably energetic signature.

That would be next to impossible to copy.

Yuri's excitement from doing well in the music show performances deflated quickly. When they got back to the dorm's Yuri was one of the first people out of the car. She snatched a sketchbook up from under Jay's bed.

Jay's songwriting habit had been around since sometime during middle school. For some reason he'd never liked using a regular notebook. It was always sketchbooks with him, hundreds of them; and Yuri knew exactly where he kept them. With her prize in her hand, Yuri seized something to write with and went out to the café she had breakfast at every morning.

At night there were more people in the café, and different workers, but with a hat and a hoodie, Yuri was able to claim a seat in the back without anyone giving her a second glance. A chocolate chip cookie, an icy glass of milk, the sketchbook, and a big black pen were her only companions as the evening wore on.

And dozens of failed attempts to copy Jay's signature.

She was slowly able to get better. The trick was to copy it upside down, rather than as an actual word. As every brain has a preconceived picture of what the letters it writes ought to look like, copying a letter that doesn't match the picture is extremely difficult. By flipping the image upside down and copying it like a random assortment of lines, the influence of the mental picture of the letters was negated entirely. The only mountain left for Yuri to conquer was a lack of artistic talent.

She was back in the café with Jay's sketchbook in the morning. It was just for extra practice, she was fairly certain that she'd gotten Jay's down. It would be just fine so long as no one looked too closely at _how_ she wrote the signature. With her customary breakfast in hand, she scribbled a few more copies of her brother's signature.

After making sure that she had it perfectly memorized, Yuri decided to make one up for herself. It was a tricky business that resulted in many pages of completely useless scribbles. Kim YuRi. It was a nice name, certainly; but getting it to look like a star's signature was harder than it seemed. She ended up with a nice bubbly looking swirl of letters spelling out her name in a picture that was about half as tall as it was long and set neatly within a stylized heart.

"That looks nice, did Yuri ask you to make it?"

Yuri glanced up and nearly jumped out of her seat. Donghae was standing beside her usual booth. He wasn't in her little bubble, allowing Yuri's reaction to play itself out without spurring any further motion. Sitting like a rabbit trying to decide between fight and flight, Yuri responded, "She liked mine and wanted one of her own."

Nodding, Donghae didn't step any closer. Before when he'd shown up unexpectedly, Donghae had always slid into the booth like he belonged there. Yuri wasn't quite sure how to handle this new mode of operation.

Donghae then produced a plate with a piece of chocolate cake on it, drizzled in chocolate sauce with a scoop of ice cream on the side. Yuri's breakfast was quickly forgotten as her eyes fixated on the chocolate delight. "Can I sit down?" Donghae asked once he was sure that Jay was taken in by the chocolate; it was Donghae's only trump card, Jay's affinity for sweets.

At Jay's nod he sat down and placed the cake in the center of the table. "You nervous about tonight?"

"Not really, it should be like the music shows right? With a signing thing beforehand?" Yuri responded, still unsure how to react to Donghae.

He nodded. "You'll get to see how many people are excited that you've joined our family," he replied, twirling one fork in his fingers and leaving another on his side of the table. He eyed Jay carefully for his reaction.

"It won't be too bad, how many fans could I possibly have gotten so quickly?" Yuri asked.

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Donghae mentioned. "You've made quite a splash in the music world here."

"Really?" Yuri said, half hopeful for Jay and half terrified for herself.

"Yup. I'd be surprised if you weren't one of the most popular members, if we ever felt like having a poll," Donghae said. "You're gonna be swamped tonight, I'm sure of it. The fans love you just as much as your QuaszauR family does."

Yuri knew this was Donghae's foray into trying to get her to stop ignoring him. It had taken a lot of willpower to keep back as far as she had been, and during that Donghae had almost been avoiding her as well. Already she could feel her determination to keep away waning, and all she was facing was a piece of chocolate cake.

When Donghae pulled the concern card, she knew she wouldn't be able to hold out long at all. "We've all been really worried about you lately. _I've_ been worried," he said, as he brought the twirling fork to a stop.

Yuri didn't respond. She'd been hoping Donghae would just sort of take the hint and leave her alone, instead of thinking that whatever was going on was something he could fix. Or worse, was something he'd caused. The second option was clearly what was going though Donghae's head as he sat there, teasing her with cake.

As far as a peace offering went, this was a fabulous one. "You know I'm here for you, right? If you ever need anything, my phone is always going to be on. I promise," he said offering over the fork.

Yuri took it.

She just couldn't deny Donghae's worried face; even if it would be better if she just stayed back. Perhaps Dara was right, perhaps Jay could work things out later. Well at this rate he would have to, Yuri thought as she battled Donghae's fork for the swirl of chocolate icing that made a flower and thoroughly enjoyed it.

By the time they were expected to head over to JYG headquarters for morning practice before the fan-meeting, it was like nothing had ever happened between them. It was a light practice, seeing as they were only going to be performing five full group songs and one from each sub group. The practice was especially fun as everyone noted the mood of the no longer gloomy twosome.

Donghae and Jay were friends again. It was a fact that cheered them all.

And better yet, Z.J. stopped by, with his laptop as always. On it he had a neat slide-show of pictures that a fan had whipped up from the stills from the variety and music shows they had filmed. They were good shots too, and put together in a series highlighted by a dramatic soundtrack. And being a fan-made video, there was a commentary of captions; on everything from the creator's favorite picture to fan-service speculations.

Yuri was pleased to note that the video's creator focused in on the relationships between Chansung and JiEun and between SeungMi and Jaebi. The fan had even given the couples cute little nicknames, Ji-Sung and Jae-Mi. Though perhaps, the nicknames had existed earlier, because all of the video's comments used the nicknames like everyday language.

A big favorite of this particular fan was Jay. There was a picture of him with every single member of QuaszauR, many that Yuri hadn't noticed anyone taking, and the fan was gushing constant praise. It was enough to make Yuri start worrying about the fan-meeting. Donghae and Dara were at her side though, cheering her up that this was a _good_ thing, especially for an addition to a band with an established fan-base. They'd seen other bands try to add members and those poor kids usually got chased out of the industry all together. Fans could be brutal if they weren't convinced you were worth their idols' time.

Apparently, they thought Jay _was_ worth it.

* * *

I'm currently working with an intensive immersion Korean Exchange program, so my updates my be a little more erratic than they have been previously. I should still be able to update every day or so, but the time will be much less regular. ^_^'


	13. Two Steps Forward, Three Steps Back

On the ride to the venue Yuri had time to grow even more concerned. She couldn't afford to let her brother down, or her brother's blooming fan-base. It took an iced mocha from Donghae, and a distracting and hilarious round of rock-paper-scissors with Dara, to get her to relax enough to face the screaming crowd of fans.

Just before the gates were opened and the line of fans was allowed to file past, shaking hands and asking for autographs on things other than posters with pens they brought from home, Donghae tossed Yuri a bottle of aspirin. He downed a dose of two himself as he said, "If you don't get a headache from this, you're officially super human. We have a concert to play after we meet all of these screaming fan-girls, and we can't let them down."

Yuri eyed the bottle warily. It didn't seem like a good idea to take medicine she wasn't sure that she needed. "YoungJae usually takes three," Dara said, stealing the bottle and getting herself one. She downed it with a sip from her water bottle, adding, "I think you'd be okay with just one."

Ceding that the experienced popstars all found this pre-meeting ritual unduly necessary, Yuri followed suit. She was soon very glad she had done so. The fans, as polite as they attempted to be, were constantly screaming at vocal pitches which only dogs could survive prolonged periods of exposure to. And their screams, as opposed to being one massive sound rumbling in from a crowd, were generated perhaps a foot from their idols' ears.

As Yuri fought to remember how to write Jay's signature as she shook hands, gave hugs, stood for fan-photos, and kept her smile in place, she was overwhelmed by the sheer number of fans pouring in. And since this was just a fan meeting it was a much smaller affair than QuaszauR's normal concerts. It made Yuri's feat with not passing out in front of a crowd ten times larger seem much more impressive to her. Though her first concert had been a disaster, she had actually performed, and she decided to count that as a success.

With Dara and Donghae and the rest of QuaszauR beside her, Yuri was able to stand there and greet the fans without thinking too much about how much they were expecting from her. About halfway through the meeting part of a fan-meeting, Donghae commented, with his arm slung around Jay's shoulders as if the week before had never happened, "Have you gotten taller?"

Yes, she had. By this time Yuri seemed to be exactly four and a half inches taller than she actually was. And she had another eight days to grow another six and a half inches, though she would probably want to slow her progression down and only shoot for another four inches or so. After all, someone shooting up a foot in height in less than two weeks would obviously be more than a medical miracle.

Yuri shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't been paying attention to it."

"You've definitely gotten taller," Donghae said. "Saenggie! Come here for a second."

YeongSaeng made his way over during a slight slowing of the fans pouring though. Donghae stood him back to back with Jay and whistled. "You two are almost the same height now! When did that happen?"

The discussion spread through the entire group fairly quickly, considering that they were all involved in polite micro-conversations with their fans. The girls of Sweet and Jaebi, who understood why Yuri needed to suddenly be a foot taller than she actually was, helped her gloss over the rapid spurt. Most of them said they thought Jay didn't look any taller at all, and that YeongSaeng must be shrinking.

The concert went perfectly, and Yuri was exceptionally proud of how well she could dance in four and a half inch platform heels. In fact she was almost willing to say that she was doing _better_ on the stilts than when she wore her regular sneakers. Once the concert was theoretically over with, Donghae stepped forward to sing _Beautiful_ much to everyone's delight. Yuri especially loved hearing it live again. He said it was an apology for not including his new solo on the _HeartQuake_ album.

By the time the fan-meeting actually ended, and the pop-stars were allowed to pile into the vans that would take them home, Yuri's head was buzzing. It was some combination of a high from performing up to par in front of so many people and the pain of having the same number of people screaming directly in her ears.

When they got back to the dorms, YeongSaeng set to work making one of his fabulous ice cream/chocolate soup creations. Yuri had never seen him make it before, because he usually waited until everyone else had gone to sleep to prepare it. However, seeing as how KyuJeon was practically asleep at the moment and still wanted the after concert treat, YeongSaeng had decided to make it early.

With Jay's taste for sweet things, it was no surprise to Donghae that he was instantly drawn to the breakfast bar where YeongSaeng was working. A few silent signals passed between the two best friends above the heads of the two singers utterly enraptured by the sweet _thing_ coming into existence before them, and YeongSaeng was convinced to make it super sized. Four long spoons were distributed between them and the dessert was consumed in record time. Also, the dorm no longer had even a small supply of chocolate fudge, caramel syrup, mini chocolate chips, vanilla or chocolate ice cream, or peanut butter chips.

As they scraped the last of the dorm's sweets from the giant bowl, the quartet discussed their schedule for the next week. Yuri had been the one to incite the conversation, as she was the only one who hadn't been briefed on the situation as it was planned out by Coordinator Yuna.

"Well, we have the music shows again this week," YeongSaeng started off.

"And we have shooting for this year's JYG Town," Donghae added.

Confused, Yuri asked, "What's that?"

"Every year JYG's president gets every artist under his company to work together on an album and at least one music video," KyuJeon explained. "Most of the bigger companies have something like it."

"We recorded _Magic _with everyone just before you went off to Japan, remember?" Donghae asked.

No, Yuri distinctly did _not_ remember. And she could only faintly remember Jay singing a song by that name over his web-cam. This could be a problem, she decided.

"I think that's it for this week though," YeongSaeng said. "_Magic_'s video and the music shows?"

"Nope, we've got a Gag Concert appearance on Thursday," Donghae reminded. "And of course, we've the tour to prepare for."

"Which you won't be participating in," JongHyun interjected from behind Donghae in the kitchen. "You're not doing anything extracurricular until you get _Crazy_ recorded."

"Written," YeongSaeng coughed, not so subtlely.

Donghae shoved him. "The first draft is almost entirely done, and I've got a good idea for the music. A few late nights in the studio and it'll be ready to roll for the tour."

"It had better be," JongHyun warned as he found what he was looking for and slipped back into the common room.

"Chansung and JiEun are helping JongHyun choreograph the tour this year, aren't they?" YeongSaeng asked.

KyuJeon added, "Kihun's helping too, he's working on the song order for them."

"Wait, wait, wait," Yuri interrupted. As the conversation seemed to be quite attached to its new course, she needed to reroute it before it was too late. "Let's go back to this music video thing, we have to do _another_ one in a week? _And_ do the music shows too?"

"Not really, we should finish up filming for _Magic_ before we have to appear on M! Countdown," Donghae soothed.

His efforts were futile. Considering Yuri's only experience with shooting a music video was the disaster of scheduling and slave labor that had been _HeartQuake_, that was of little surprise. Jay could worry about the tour, that was all on his shoulders, but it was _Yuri_ that had to deal with this music video.

The three singers who had been through the JYG family-event before tried to calm Jay down for another few minutes, but he didn't seem any more relaxed by the time he went off to bed than he had when they had begun.

Yuri, who was worrying about filming a music video for a song that she _didn't know the words to_, found _Magic_ on her iPod. Jay had sent her the track after all. She just hadn't listened to it very often. But she set it on repeat now as she slipped into bed with her headphones on, hoping that she could somehow assimilate it as she slept. It had worked with the Harry Potter books in high school after all.

The filming venue was a large warehouse, decorated with an A-rate set that appeared to be a huge climbing play-set, complete with three different kinds of slide, that the film crew had stolen from a nearby park. Yuri almost laughed to see it, even through her morning grogginess. Actively working to memorize while you slept worked really well for its purpose, but it deprived the studious sleeper of most of their sleep. Even after two mochas, and humming _Magic_ in her head to the point of annoyance, Yuri was still fairly sleepy.

The make-up crew took care of the circles under her eyes though, and she looked perfectly refreshed for the filming. She didn't actually wake up until she realized exactly who was under the JYG name in the Korean music industry. Her bout of being star-struck on the music shows was _nothing_ compared to this. She wasn't just hanging back stage for a few minutes with the best in the business; this time she was working _alongside_ the industry's greats. It was a heady thought to process.

The best part was the shoot itself. Rather than having to fill in a complicated story with spot on acting, the JYG Family only needed to play around on the set. The point of release a video like with was to show the camaraderie among the various artists, and the best way to do that was to let them goof off together. There were parts that required focus, like the individual verses that were filmed on the last two days of shooting, but for the most part it was all fun and games.

Yuri even got a little side project to work on during the filming. Though she was still figuring out what to do with SooHyun and Kihun, another would-be couple was floundering around. These two had an excuse, sort of; they were members of two different bands and therefore weren't confident in their ability to maintain a relationship. Hero, the leader of a trio called Don Quixote, and Angel, the main vocalist for the large girls' group Green Apples, both of which weren't fabulously popular in Korea but had huge fan-bases in foreign countries, wouldn't be easily able to date in the traditional sense due to massive scheduling conflicts. However they were clearly each serious about the other, and after three days of one on one chats with QuaszauR's resident matchmaker, they were official.

More than a few bets were won; QuaszauR's members earned themselves nearly a year's supply IOU favors as the only people willing to bet against Jay's success in getting the couple most known for being obstinate among the JYG family were the people in other bands. Particularly it was the other people who had tried to accomplish the same feat that were hesitant to put their faith in Jay.

QuaszauR's members encouraged their skepticism, as it worked out better for them in the end. They were still giggling like mad over the situation as they warmed up for practice in the M! Countdown studios. Kihun and SooHyun sobered up a bit when they realized that they were the next victims, but only a bit.

After taking her time getting an understanding of what the situation was with Kihun and SooHyun, Yuri wondered if the only thing stopping them from being officially together was the official part. Neither one had a specific reason that made them opposed to becoming a couple, and yet in the most infuriating way Yuri had yet to deal with, they simply refused to take that last step. If they ever stood more than five feet apart, for any reason, Yuri had never seen it. Heck, even the choreography let them stand rather close together.

Trying to talk them into simply confessing and what not created more face-palm moments than Yuri could count. And she hounded them about it too. The worst bit was they both knew the other's feelings already. The two people had been in love since before either of them had even joined JYG . . . and they refused to date one another for no logical or even articulated reason. In short, Yuri was frustrated.

She was arguing about it with Kihun in one of the vans, as SooHyun rode in the other, on the way to what everyone was brushing off as a Parody Concert. Yuri had no idea what she was in for, but at the moment she was too busy trying to get Kihun to at least explain why he wouldn't ask SooHyun out.

Kihun tried to drag the rest of QuaszauR into it, but he failed miserably when he realized that Donghae, YeongSaeng, Dara, and KyuJeon were his only companions in the van besides Jay. YoungJae was driving and refused to take part, though secretly even he was in support of Jay's cause.

The parody show was a laugh. QuaszauR was onstage with two other well-known bands. The three MC's spent the entire show making fun of them. It was strange how fun it was to be made fun of.

Yuri actually got asked a few questions when the MC's were talking about QuaszauR. They showed a bunch of pictures, from the variety shows, the music shows, the fan meeting, and even behind the scenes shots from the JYG Town shoot, all of which showed the couples Yuri had set up. QuaszauR's Cupid, as she was being called, was asked about how she'd managed to get them all together.

"Not even the other JYG bands are safe!" One of the MC's exclaimed, "Is _anyone_ safe?" Then he added with an intense interest, "Is anyone else at risk of getting in the way of one of your arrows?"

"Actually there is," Yuri said with a grin. A telling glare from both SooHyun and Kihun, caught easily by the cameras, allowed Yuri to be confident that everyone knew who she was taking about even as she said, "But I'm not going to tell you just yet."

There were a few more questions directed her way, mostly in not so sneaky attempts to get her to talk about her latest project couple. The MC's even posted a web poll as to who ought to be Jay's next pairing, the options included even members of other entertainment companies. Next to the poll was a photo-shopped image of Jay's head on a cupid body; it cracked everyone up, especially Yuri.

What next got everyone laughing confused Yuri. She'd missed something, apparently, because the next thing she knew Dara was dragging her out onto the main stage. One member from each of the other bands was also present out on the floor as Yuri fought to figure out what was going on. Everyone in both bands, and the crew and live audience, was terribly excited about this turn of events.

Yuri couldn't understand it until Dara dragged her off-stage whispering, "You've been volunteered to pretend to be your sister! You get to be a girl again!"

"What?" Yuri asked. She'd never seen this on a TV show before. Admittedly, she'd never really watched anything but dramas in terms of Korean television, but this still sounded weird.

Dara just looked at Yuri like she'd fallen from the sky. "You really don't watch anything but dramas do you?" she said, reading the expression off her friend's face.

Backstage, Yuri and Dara met up with Coordinator Yuna. She walked her charges back to the dressing rooms, explaining to Yuri that this sort of thing was commonplace, and that since Jay's face was so attractive anyway, putting a wig on and pretending to be a girl would eventually happen to him regardless of his desire to do so. It just so happened that this time he really was a she.

Yuna handed Dara a bag of clothes and let her go change, herding Yuri to another dressing room. "This dress is _just_ conservative enough to make sure they don't notice you're really a girl. Just make sure to be a little shaky on the heels at first, though I know you've worn higher," Yuna said passing Yuri her bag of clothes.

The dress was basically the most hideous thing Yuri had ever worn, an orange paisley print tea-length ensemble finished with six inch _yellow_ stilettos. And to top it off was a wig of long ginger ringlets slightly tamed by a thick ribbon that was banana yellow to match the shoes.

When she slipped out of the dressing room, both Yuna and Dara were there to meet her. Dara was wearing a stylish pale blue suit jacket over a white dress shirt. It was paired with pants of an even paler blue and white dress shoes that looked vaguely American 20's in style. Her hair was tucked up inside a flat cap that looked like she'd stolen it from Donghae, as it had navy embroidery in its pale blue base that wrote out the letters H.D.

They certainly didn't stand for Jung Dara.

And as if the stolen hat wasn't the perfect trump all accessories; she'd added a very fake stick on mustache that curled around in perfect circles on each cheek.

"You look lovely!" Yuna said. This was the first time the coordinator had see Yuri dressed as a girl, so she was actually being honest.

Yuri, who thought she looked like the 70's threw up on her, tried to smile sincerely at the compliment. Fortunately, Dara was dragging her back towards the stage and Yuna wasn't able to see the weakness in her response.

They were the last of the three bands' members to reach the stage. The other two guys were fidgeting in dresses of equally bad taste out on the floor. One of the MC's noted the arrival of QuaszauR's members in the wing and announced, "And last but not least, here's JaeLo and Darrell!"

"Oh, certainly not least," one of his partners commented, as he looked over Dara's stylish image and Yuri's not so stylish one. He wolf-whistled at Yuri, saying, "QuaszauR's Cupid makes a neat girl with that pretty face of his!"

Yuri blushed, but under the lights and the make-up only Dara could tell. The rest could guess though, as the MC continued to rant for a solid five minute segment of the show that Jay made for one of the prettiest girls he'd ever seen. It didn't help Yuri's complexion when the members of all three bands joined in with him.

The MC's weren't finished with just embarrassing Yuri. They picked on the singles left in QuaszauR, citing that their expressions said they might not be single for much longer, even without Cupid's arrows. The worst was when they chided Donghae's expression of awed surprise, seeing as he _had_ a girlfriend already.

"I don't blame you though, JaeLo's just about as pretty as your MinYeon," one of the MC's sympathized, sitting down in Jay's empty seat to sling a consoling arm around Donghae's shoulders. "I'd be tempted too, if I were you."

This made Yuri duck her head from pure, overwhelming embarrassment. Donghae didn't respond, but YeongSaeng mentioned, "And she's better in the kitchen than MinYeon is, you know. JaeLo knows how to cook!"

"And she's so tidy," Dara chimed in. "She keeps everything nice and clean. And knows that amazing headache remedy . . . I'm glad she's my girlfriend." 'Darrell' chortled and picked Yuri off her feet, spinning her around in triumph before setting her gently back down on the wobbly heels that weren't too much more difficult to walk in than the platform sneakers she was already used to wearing.

A round of laughs at Donghae's expense passed though the assembly. Shortly after the MC's had wrung the joke dry, the elected members of each group were allowed to go change back into their regular clothes. The show wasn't quite over though and they had one more challenge when they got back to their places.

They had to put on unrehearsed special stages. One band did the Wonder Girl's _Tell Me_, which made Yuri laugh tremendously because their impressively large main rapper took SunMi's part and played the role perfectly. The other parodied Orange Caramel's _Magic Girl_, but considering how cute the song was, they severely underplayed their ability to over-act _cute. _And since it was such a popular song to parody, heck even the band that _made _it parodied it, far better had been done before.

QuaszauR, being such a large group, had to perform twice. _Sorry Sorry_ and _Gee_ were their challenges, quite predictably, but still perfectly. Thirteen of them volunteered for _Sorry Sorry_ right away, Yuri being one of them. Donghae, of course, was obligated to play Lee Donghae's part, as they were not only of the same name, but also of similar build, voice, and personality. Yuri got to be RyeoWook for the song, though YeongSaeng probably would have been a better choice for his ability to sustain the higher notes of the part and the way his voice bounced off of Jinki's who was playing SungMin.

It was fantastically fun, and one of the best parodies of the song that had been played on that particular show. Their _Gee_ was about the same, but _Gee_ was victim to the same issue that _Magic Girl_ was. _Sorry Sorry _was a song designed for parodies, and it was just plain perfect to begin with, so anyone off the street could try it and not be pressured to be spectacular and still be sure to pull it off. _Gee_ on the other hand took an extraordinary level of ridiculousness to make it stand out.

The ride home was quick and noisy as the band laughed over the events of the show. YoungJae hushed them all to a reasonable level as they neared the dorms explaining, "Though it was supposed to be filmed last week, the camera crew for the _A Day In the Life_ series for k-pop Idols will be here in the morning, so don't be too surprised when they come and try to wake you up. And if you have anything left to get ready for Wednesday's concert, you should probably get that ready very soon." This statement came with a pointed glare at Donghae, whose song _I Must be Crazy_ was still under production.

It wouldn't be ready for this concert, Donghae knew, but it would probably be perfect by the time they actually started touring. Still, he saw no reason that he shouldn't give it some work tonight, just because he had the free time to do so. He gave his leader a nod and headed off across the park as the rest of the band filed up to their dorm.

Yuri didn't notice as he slipped off because she was too busy asking Dara about the upcoming concert. "It's sort of a combination of tour kick-off and music video release celebration," she explained. "It's going to be exactly like the other concerts you've done with us, same order and choreography and everything. Actually, the day after that would probably be the best time for you to switch back with Jay. We don't have anything scheduled and it wouldn't be too unusual for one of us to wander off when given the time to do so."

Dara hadn't wanted to mention the inevitable moment of the change-over, but it seemed like helping Yuri plan it all would somehow help her think about it less.

"That's sorta what Jay said," Yuri mentioned. "He didn't say anything about Thursday being the day after a concert, though."

She grumbled a bit more about how horrible her brother was for almost half a drama episode before she noticed that Donghae was missing. "I was wondering when you were going to ask about that," Dara said with a grin. "He's at the studio, working on that track of his. The one that was supposed to be finished two months ago."

"Oh," Yuri said.

"You can go visit him, it not like it's a top secret military project he's working on or anything," Dara mentioned.

Yuri shrugged. "He needs to focus; I wouldn't want to bother him."

With a heavy sigh, Dara said, "You don't have to even say hi, there's a window in the studio, one way. Inside that back wall is just black glass. It's so the president can come down and check up on what everyone's doing without disturbing their work. You can get in and get out with no one the wiser, just to see how he's doing. Leave a snack or something at the door, maybe."

"We do have more of those fruit gel things," Yuri mused.

Dara jumped up and dragged Yuri to the kitchen. "Mango is his favorite," she mentioned, tossing her friend the half full bag of them. You wanna bring a travel mug of hot chocolate with you? I'm making some anyway."

Yuri nodded, and in about ten minutes she was walking out the door with her goodies. The plan was to keep the hot chocolate for herself, leaving only the fruit snacks where Donghae could find them, and then spend part of the evening wandering around the park. It was a pleasant evening outside and the park was her favorite place to spend large amounts of time.

Dara thought this was a great idea and said she would tell YoungJae that Jay wouldn't be back for a while as Yuri headed out the door. The moment she was sure her friend was gone, Dara eyed YeongSaeng. He gave a nod and pulled out his cell phone.

When Donghae felt his phone vibrate, his first instinct was to ignore it. But then he thought of what he'd said to Jay about always having an open line of communication. "Hello?"

"I'm going to make a prediction here," YeongSaeng's voice said smugly across the line. "If you go grab a water bottle right now, you will be a much happier over-time worker. I can _promise_ you that much."

"What are you talking about?"

"Can't you pretend to trust me for like five minutes?" YeongSaeng asked with a laugh. From further away called KyuJeon and Dara together, "You really should listen to him, he knows what he's talking about!"

Making sure he'd saved his work in three different places, just in case, Donghae sighed, saying, "Fine, I'll go get a drink."

He hung up and returned his phone to his pocket, wondering what kind of scheme those three had cooked up. He didn't wonder long. As he came around the corner heading towards the break room on this floor, he came face to face with Jay, whose expression could not have been more surprised.

"Donghae-hyungnim!" he stuttered. "What are you doing here?"

"I was thirsty, so was I heading out to get some water," Donghae explained, grinning at Jay's utter shock that the explanation was so mundane. "Why are you here?"

Yuri couldn't think of a better reason so she held out the fruit gels. "I thought you might want a snack or something."

Donghae took the bag and walked back to the studio he'd been using. Yuri hesitantly followed him, and only because he looked back to make sure she was. The inside of the studio had more buttons and switches than Yuri had ever seen in one place. The counter was packed more densely with knobs and dials than any airplane cockpit. To say she was intrigued would be a severe understatement.

Seeing Jay's wide eyes, Donghae said, "Wanna hear what it sounds like so far?"

"Can I?"

"Definitely, come here," Donghae said passing Yuri a pair of headphones as she came and tentatively sat on the edge of one of the chairs.

She slipped them on as he expertly messed with at least a dozen of the switches. For a moment nothing happened, Yuri looked in confusion to Donghae. He grinned smugly and hit one last button.

The music that began pounding though the headphones at that moment made Yuri jump, both because of the sudden loud volume, and because it wasn't anything like she expected. Donghae's usual musical vibe was fairly mellow, with high energy ballads being his signature. This was entirely different. It was a much more dramatic song, almost aggressive in its sound. Yuri was quite surprised.

She was almost sure she didn't like it, for being too un-Donghae-like. But then he began to sing, not real words or anything, but the basic tune he wanted to lay down with the background music. That's what made the difference. Donghae's voice was so smoothe and tender that the harsh sounding music could be made into a sweet high energy melody.

"It's beautiful!" Yuri said when the song finished up.

Donghae smiled. "It's not quite finished yet there's still some tweaking left to do tonight, and then I'll need to get the right words to fit exactly so, but you know the whole routine."

Nodding like what he was saying made sense to her, Yuri watched as he fiddled with a few more of the dials. "Can I stay and watch?" she asked shyly.

"Depends," Donghae teased.

"On what?"

"Can I have some of whatever's in that mug?"

Nodding vigorously, Yuri handed the mug over. "It's Dara's hot chocolate. There's cinnamon in it."

Taking a sip, Donghae smacked his lips. "It's tasty."

He handed Yuri back the mug as she curled up in her chair. She tucked in her feet so that she could rest her head on her knees as she watched Donghae work. Once he was sure that Jay was settled he got back to what he was doing straight away. Jay was a good observer, keeping quiet as he worked, and most importantly not touching anything.

MinYeon had been the only other person Donghae had let watch him work; anyone else who had ever been present was always actively contributing to the project, like YeongSaeng. MinYeon however, had proved to be an annoyance at best as she was too fidgety to simply sit and watch, especially as most of the progress was in very subtle sound variations.

On the other hand, Jay watched intently, nodding at just the right times so that Donghae was sure he really understood what had been changed and why. He could hear the subtleties in the music; better than most rookie singers, by far. In fact he'd been so attentive and attuned for nearly three hours that Donghae actually considered asking him what he thought the next step ought to be when he hit a creative stumbling block.

Jay however had fallen asleep.

Donghae had to pause in his work, just to give a soft smile. Jay was certainly a sight when he was sleeping. The MC's on the parody show had been right about his pretty face. Donghae gently eased off Jay's headphones and brushed back his hair. It was getting really long, he noticed. Even over grown a bit, Jay's hair was still exceptionally soft and Donghae mussed it up a bit as he brushed it out of Jay's face because it felt nice on his fingers.

Before going back to work, Donghae went and grabbed a jacket from the stock and wrapped it around Jay's shoulders. He also relieved the sleeping singer of his mug of hot chocolate, finishing it off as he laid the last of the track down for _I Must be Crazy_. The short break had allowed his mind to reengage in the creative process; there would be minor tweaking of it later, once the words were finalized, but for the most part the music was finished by the time Donghae closed up shop for the night.

He was able to carry Jay across the park to the dorms without even breaking a sweat. He would have to make sure Jay was getting enough to eat, because for a well muscled dancer, he was awfully light.

Helpfully the door had been left slightly ajar, as if someone had known Donghae would have to carry Jay back. There may have been more than just cinnamon in the hot chocolate Dara had prepared for him. After placing Jay in his bed, Donghae took a shower and made a cup of tea. There was no one else up, but there also wasn't any rush to get to bed. The film crew that would be following them around the next day wouldn't arrive until seven thirty and it wasn't like he had to be ready to go onstage for a concert when they showed up. He could just take his time and putter about until he felt like going to bed.

When Yuri woke up the next morning she was in her bed. It was still early and she took a leisurely shower before heading out to breakfast. It was only once she was halfway though her muffin that she remembered there was a film crew showing up later in the morning. Checking the clock on her new phone she supposed she had a few more minutes, but a text from Donghae soon dashed those hopes.

_They're ready for your close up_._ ^.~_

Yuri quickly finished up her muffin and headed back to the dorm. Donghae was there to meet her at the door. "Cameraman-ssi was so disappointed to find out that you had already taken off this morning," he said with a catching grin. "He wanted to show the fans how adorable you look when you're unconscious."

YeongSaeng chimed in, "I really do feel sorry for them; Donghae have you taken any selcas with our sleeping beauty?"

"Or not-sleeping, as it were," KyuJeon joined in.

Sheepishly, Yuri replied, "Sorry, but I brought you guys coffee."

"We forgive you," KyuJeon said immediately taking a caramel macchiato off Yuri's hands. The others agreed and soon Yuri was integrated back into the group so well that the camera man could have sworn she'd been there the whole time.

"And what's in store for QuaszauR today?" he asked, once YoungJae and SooHyun had finished their breakfasts.

SooHyun was the one who answered, her eyes sparkling with expectations, "Shopping!" The one word conveyed her full excitement better than a paragraph could have. She was going to have _fun_. The girls of Sweet shared her high expectations, they were looking forward to the day as much as she was.

The only thing they would have liked more than getting to play dress up and making their male companions play along would have been for Yuri to get to be herself on the expedition. That would have made things perfect.

Yuri though, was quite content as things were. She had almost as much fun letting SooHyun, Donghae, Dara, and YeongSaeng tell her what to try on and giving critiques of each outfit while acting as Jay as she would have as Yuri. In fact since she could only be Yuri when the boys weren't around, being Jay was actually the preferable option.

They never stopped moving once all day. They ate on the go; played in fountains to cool off; and rested while the others were trying on new clothes. It was during one of the breaks that Yuri had her first, non-stress-related fan-girl heart-attack. She was sitting by the shop window with Dara and SooHyun when he walked by.

The world within the Korean music industry had its own unique version of the Where's Waldo game, and this one involved a real person. International fan forums in the hundreds had been set up to find this one person who was supposedly 'away acting'. And here he was walking around in a shopping mall in Seoul; _OhMyGod_ blonde, and wearing thick framed glasses, but it was definitely him.

Yuri's mouth dropped open when he waved. SooHyun and Dara nodded in acknowledgement, but neither said anything.

"That's . . . .but that's," Yuri stuttered. "It can't really be _him_."

Dara nodded. "It's him."

"No way, no _way!_" Yuri giggled at near hyper-ventilation levels."That's Kim Ki-"

SooHyun cut her off, "We don't talk about him. Ever. Or what he's doing. We'll fill you in later, but for now _They_ don't want it to be even _rumored_ that he's in Korea."

"The current most popular fan theory is that he's in China, masquerading as a Chinese ELF and sending his bandmates letters," Dara mentioned, in testament to SooHyun's claim. Both girls wore very grave expressions.

Yuri decided not to ask. If he wanted to walk around the mall while pretending to be in a different country, he was perfectly allowed to do just that. And as someone who believed in letting the Idols live like people, Yuri would do her darndest to let him.

Though, the will power it took not to run after him screaming was immense.

The rest of the day wasn't half as exciting. Yuri kept imagining that he could see him vanishing into every crowd they passed.

Once they got back to the dorms with their piles of new clothes, Yuri imagined that the film crew would pack it up for the night. She discovered that this was not the case at all when Dara told her, "Take a quick shower and get changed into something nice, we're going out tonight."

Yuri did as she was instructed, perplexed but trusting, and found herself set up next to Dara at the door, dressed for a club as fancy as the set of _HeartQuake_. Twenty minutes later they ended up in a real club; one that had active patrons and loud music, and some of the best nachos Yuri had ever eaten. The food was surprisingly western, and _accurately_ western, which made Yuri very happy.

They spent most of the evening sitting together at their table, snacking, laughing, and singing along. Eventually though, the girls got the urge to dance. Dara dragged Yuri out, of course, and the pair of them had a blast. The best part about dancing in a club was that there was very little difference between what a guy was expected to do, and what a girl was. And the periods where they were just doing whatever were limited.

Every time a song with fun choreography came on, most of the band got up and joined in. The ones that had never actually been dancing at a club before were shyer in regards to the non-choreographed parts, but as the night wore on, everyone loosened up.

Someone mentioned that staying up this late was probably a bad idea with a concert to hold the next night, but since no one was consuming even a drop of alcohol, YoungJae and SooHyun decided that it would be fine.

Yuri was swung around between the group of people who knew who she was and her good friends still in the dark throughout the night. She, KyuJeon, and Jinki danced adorably to _Magic Girl_, putting on a show that was far less professional and far more entertaining than the group who'd performed it on the parody show. Everyone loved it; Donghae and YeongSaeng especially.

They were up and on the floor nearly all night, but for the most part they were just watching. They _were_ convinced the put on a great show of _Tell Me_ with Jinki, Jay, and KyuJeon, however. By the time the night was actually over, the two were some of the few left standing unassisted. YoungJae and JongHyun were awake as well.

The older two drove home, while the others filled the vans like zombies. Jay was so tired as he slunk into the back seat of one that he hadn't realized Dara was in the other. He wound up between YeongSaeng and Donghae, chatting groggily with KyuJeon around YeongSaeng. The two slowly got less and less talkative until they had both fallen asleep on YeongSaeng's shoulders.

YeongSaeng eyed Donghae over Jay's head with a raised eyebrow. Donghae's grin was crooked as he carefully transferred Jay's weight to leaning up against him. Though YeongSaeng stayed quiet, Donghae knew he would receive endless teasing for the action. At the moment, he didn't particularly care. Jay fit neatly into the crook of his arm and radiated a comforting warmth against his side. With his arm around Jay's shoulders, Donghae arranged his hand to play with the soft tendrils of Jay's hair. He could still chat quietly with YeongSaeng, by placing his cheek on top of the soft hair he was playing with. All in all, the ride home was a perfect end to a wonderful day.

A _long_ and wonderful day.

Jay and KyuJeon weren't the only ones to have fallen asleep before the band arrived home. It took three trips, of carrying the lighter ones and half dragging the heavier ones, to get everyone upstairs, but once they had, the four still awake shared a few minutes' chat over mugs of hot chocolate. The camera crew had been left at the club, and they were all finally able to relax.

The two leaders had been fairly concerned about the day, wondering if what they brought their members along for would make them happy and would make the fans happy, while at the same time keeping the film crew happy. . . it had been a lot more work than it had seemed. When they turned in for the night YeongSaeng wasn't far behind.

"He makes you happy, right? Happier than MinYeon ever has," he said out of the blue as he drained his mug, voicing his thoughts after a long moment of silence. Placing it in the dishwasher, he added, "I mean when was the last time you stayed out so late with _her_ and didn't come back feeling hung over? And you always stay out as long as you can with him."

"What are you talking about?" Donghae asked, spraying another round of whipped cream into his almost empty mug. Jay's love of sweets was rubbing off on him.

YeongSaeng shrugged. "I'm just saying. You get headaches so bad when you've spent too much time with her that I really get worried sometimes. When you're with Jay, you actually seem . . . happy."

"What do you mean?"

YeongSaeng hesitated. This seriousness wasn't his usual thing, but he couldn't find a way to turn his thoughts into the teasing Donghae was expecting from him. "I've always supported you with MinYeon, and always will if you stay with her. But I worry. You're my best friend and if you decide to do anything, you know I'll support you. But I _hate_ seeing how trashed you are when you come home sometimes, how closed off you get from all of us after you spend the night with her."

Donghae watched, a bit wary, as YeongSaeng sighed heavily. He waited for a long moment as YeongSaeng collected his thoughts, aware of how to behave around this rarely displayed, deeply contemplative side of his friend. "With Jay, you're different. You're calm, and engaged, and . . . happy. Really . . . happy."

"What are you saying?" Donghae asked quietly, trying not to startle YeongSaeng out of his semi-meditation. His friend could be easily startled when he was like this.

YeongSaeng gave himself a shake, getting back into his good humor. "I don't know. It's just something to think about, I guess. Goodnight, then."

Mulling over YeongSaeng's words, Donghae finished up his tea. He would have thought YeongSaeng would have been much more teasing and relentless; and yet at the same time, this was making him think about it so much more than any teasing would have. It was a strange thing to consider. Donghae finished his drink and went to bed, pausing at his door for only a brief moment to look down the hall to where Jay was no doubt sleeping peacefully.

Yuri woke up on the morning of her last concert with QuaszauR bright and early, even for her. Her stomach was filled with butterflies and Yuri imagined for no apparent reason that they were blue. Her breakfast was lighter than usual because of it, anything heavier than half a whole grain muffin wouldn't have stayed down.

"Hey, Jay! How ya feeling?" she said into her cell phone as she sat down.

His answer was comfortingly chipper. "Bored beyond belief; you know I haven't had cable since I've been here? I've been reading up on gossip websites and they only put up videos from the music shows. Sure they _tell _us that QuaszauR was on all these television shows, but they won't let me watch them. And surprisingly, no one's You-tubed any of them. I've got plenty of clips of you being cute with Donghae, Dara, KyuJeon, and YeongSaeng, though. Thanks for ruining my whole intense image."

"You know you're not actually that sketchy, you usually act more like a little kid than I do," Yuri complained.

"I do not."

"Do too."

They continued bickering like that for another few minutes until Jay suddenly asked, "My plane's gonna land about an hour before the concert, do you think I'll be able to come see you beforehand?"

"Nope, YoungJae let us stay out really late last night so he's gonna be kicking our butts in practice before we go onstage," Yuri said. She thought for a second though and added, "But Yuna-unnie has my stuff, and in it should be the stage pass so you can at least see the concert."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world," Jay promised.

"And then maybe you can get _your_ butt over here and I'll be able to see _you_ up on stage," Yuri suggested.

Donghae slipped into the seat across from her, smiling and silent. Yuri nodded to note that she was pleased he was here and continued her chat with Jay; much more carefully of course. Jay picked it up quickly, even guessing who it was that she let invade her breakfast sanctuary. "Donghae's there right? Well I'll let you go then, and I'll see you tonight, though you won't see me."

"I look forward to it, love you, bye," Yuri said, closing her phone as Donghae took her uneaten muffin half off of her hands.

"Yuri?" he guessed. "How's she liking Japan?"

"She loves it, but she thinks that she's going to have to go back to school soon," Yuri explained. "She's on break now, and she won't be able to get back on this side of the globe for a while until she can get a study visa or something."

Donghae frowned; he knew how much Jay loved his sister and wanted her to be a part of his life. "How long will that be?"

"A while," Yuri said.

Donghae did not miss the regret in Jay's voice. It was such a shame that she'd spent her entire trip to Asia in Japan except for a few short days. Jay must have been feeling really down at the thought of her leaving. And then there was the problem of why she'd been in Japan; the person in the hospital was still there, as far as Donghae knew, which must have been making Jay worry as well.

Not wanting to push that envelope just yet, Donghae tried to brighten the mood. "Are you looking forward to the concert?"

Yuri nodded furiously. "Yeah, I'm not sure why, but I'm really excited."

"Third time's the charm, as you westerners say," Donghae said. He went on to talk about how Jay should still make sure to eat a good lunch and keep the nerves down. "Now let's go see YoungJae, we've got a concert to rehearse for."

Donghae and Yuri followed the vans to the venue on the bike and prepared for the concert in the most ridiculous manner possible: they went through the dances backwards, when YoungJae wasn't looking of course. The day was amazingly fun: the best Yuri had ever had, hands down.

During lunch, when Donghae made sure she ate at least half of a serving by picking up pieces of his meal with his chopsticks and poking the air by Yuri's mouth with it repeatedly until she relented and forced it down. She was getting more and more nervous, despite the fun she was having, as the concert got closer and closer.

When the crowd began filing in, and the sounds of their excitement reached the ears of the popstars waiting back stage, Yuri's panic began to bubble over. Donghae responded promptly, with a piece of chocolate. And then another. He had a Hershey bar tucked away somewhere and he was periodically breaking off pieces of it to distract her.

Chocolate was Jay's favorite after all.

YeongSaeng made a coffee run and handed Yuri the mocha that was meant to go to Donghae. Yuri delivered the present happily, because coffee was Donghae's favorite.

The concert was amazingly fun. Yuri actually performed well, and not by her low standards, but by the basic standards of a Korean idol performance. She even got back-flips right. And when Donghae's solo went on, she and YeongSaeng jumped out to join him perfectly on cue.

That was the most exhilarating dance Yuri had ever performed. She thrived off the screams of the crowd this time, feeding off their energy rather than cowering away from it. The buzzy feeling was the most amazing sensation that had ever coursed through Yuri's system, a kind of high that made her feel so incredibly satisfied that she could hardly describe it.

There was a catching point in her happiness however. The more fun she had, the more it would hurt when it was all over. This realization came crashing down on her during Jinki's solo, a sweetly sad song called _A Simple Goodbye_.

It made Yuri cry.

Jinki's voice was naturally high and wavering; it could impart a desperate, tragic, longing into anything he sang. But it was a particularly mournful series of trilling notes that made up the end of the chorus '_From coffee and cake after a long hard day, to how you move, how you sit, how you smile in that way, you've changed my whole world in few simple ways, and I'm not gonna lie, girl. You aren't just a simple goodbye'_

Halfway through the second verse, the welling tears in her eyes over flowed. Donghae was right there beside her, his arms folding in a concerned circle around her, as they stood behind Jinki onstage. Dara was there too, holding her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze of understanding.

Yuri managed to stop actively crying before Jinki's solo ended, but only just. And it was only the lights that kept everyone else from noticing, sort of. The lights may have hid her tears from the band, but they highlighted them for the fans; and, though Yuri didn't know it, the cause of her tears would be the subject of hot debate beginning before the concert even ended. Donghae's reaction to them would also be a hot topic as JaeHae fans spammed support all across the internet. The rapid speed of this reaction was all due to the progress of technology and the ability for phones to update twitter from anywhere, even with pictures.

While a sect of the QuaszauR fan-base rejoiced, Donghae was quite concerned. He had no idea as to the exact reason behind Jay's tears, and getting to the bottom of that was his top priority. He diligently worked to soothe whatever Jay's concerns were; at least until MinYeon made an unexpected, and rather unwelcome, visit backstage and Donghae was dragged away with an extreme display of force.

He managed to resist just long enough to make sure Jay nodded when he reminded him about the fact that his cell would always be on. After that however, he was forced into MinYeon's Mercedes and carted off to dinner. According to MinYeon's chatter, the dinner was to celebrate the phenomenal release of the _HeartQuake _music video, which was already the most popular topic on Youtube and Twitter.

It wasn't until MinYeon decided to yell at her boyfriend for constantly checking his phone that Donghae realized how worried about Jay he was. The hope was that Jay would send him a message asking to talk, or perhaps detailing the problem. He hadn't even been listening to half of what MinYeon had been saying, particularly while she was complaining about his inattentiveness.

Interrupting her mid-rant, Donghae asked suddenly, "Why are we doing this?"

"Doing what?"

"This," Donghae repeated, with a gesture. "Why are we dating?"

MinYeon was completely perplexed. "Because we're in love."

"No, we're not," Donghae mused. "This isn't love; you complain about everything I do, and I only put up with half of what you do because I'm supposed to. We're not interested in anything the other is, and I don't think we actually even _like_ each other."

MinYeon's expression was completely blank with shock and stupidity. "What are you saying?"

"I . . . I think we should break up."

"_What?_" MinYeon demanded, "What's brought this up?"

Donghae sort of smiled, trying to explain it in words.

MinYeon didn't need him to say anything. That expression only came up around one topic. "Jay," she said simply, horrified. "You're dumping me, _ME,_ for _Jay_?" She took her glass of wine in her hand and swirled it around angrily after taking a long swig. "I should have expected something like this," she wailed. "What with your best friend being . . . and the two of you _living_ together. Oh, I can't believe you. How long have you been like this? Cheating on me? With a _guy_? I don't deserve this. I have been nothing but good to you, and you . . . using me because I'm popular and pretty . . ."

MinYeon was crying now. Donghae felt a slight urge to comfort her, but only a slight one. In fact, her running make up reminded him of Jay's, which got his thoughts back to worrying about what was happening with him. He checked his phone again as MinYeon continued to rant about failings in Donghae that she was making up as she went.

_You should be here . . . _

The message was from Dara, ominous and worrisome. It made Donghae's mind up immediately. He stood from the table, gave a bow to MinYeon, and then walked out of the restaurant without a backwards glance. No one but the staff noticed his abrupt exit, and they hadn't heard his quarrel with his girlfriend. They assumed, seeing as Min-Hae was one of the longest lived couples in the celebrity world, that something _external_ had happened; Donghae had gotten an urgent message, and even MinYeon was worried about it based on her rapid consumption of alcohol.

Donghae, whose bike was still six blocks away at the concert venue, sprinted till his lungs burned to reach it as quickly as possible. If speed limit signs had been posted at some point, tonight Donghae was going far too fast to see them. He got back to the dorms in record time, mildly surprised that he hadn't gotten stopped by the police.

Upstairs, he walked into the common room to see Jay curled upon the couch between Dara and SeungMi as a drama played on the television. Donghae hardly paused. He went straight to his room, digging though his closet to find a particular leather article. It had come with the bike's protective gear and seemed to be styled to fit a much younger man than Donghae, or perhaps an adorable almost-midget, like the one named Jay.

* * *

**A/N: ** In case you can't guess, the mysterious singer is supposed to be Kim KiBum of SuJu. I wrote this during the height of his mysterious absence from the universe. ^_~


	14. The Logistics of Disaster

Meanwhile, Yuri was wallowing.

She realized how much she was going to miss this. She hadn't thought that leaving would be the hard part, not once during any of her trials here. For two months she'd looked forward to the day she could go home more than anything. She'd ranted and railed at Jay for putting her through this. Now, she was cursing that all of this belonged to him and she was only a temporary trespasser.

It wasn't fair.

Her brother had as good as abandoned her when he ran off to be a popstar. She'd done everything right, been a good little girl, eaten her vegetables, gotten good grades, worked two jobs, and earned a good living. And yet, Jay was the one who had friends, a family. _He _was the one who'd found his place in the world.

Yuri was just the one that got left behind.

Left by her mother.

Left by her father.

Left by her brother.

Left by all the stupid idiots she'd dated.

Left behind by the relentless progression of time.

It sucked.

It really sucked, and it wasn't fair.

She was mulling over every horrible aspect of her situation on the couch in the common room of QuaszauR's dorm. Dara was on one side of her and SeungMi was on the other. The two girls were doing their best to comfort Yuri, but that just made her all the more miserable.

Yuri was so lost in her own little woe-is-me world that she didn't notice Dara fiddling with her phone. She didn't even notice Donghae's sudden return. What she did notice was that, at some point during her grieving, someone lifted her off the couched by the armpits and heaved her over his shoulder.

She recognized Donghae by his smell, that crisp, clean scent that was uniquely his. She wasn't able to understand what was going on as he carried her down to the parking garage. She couldn't see him send YoungJae a text message explaining that Jay needed to be cheered up and since practice didn't start until noon the next day, they were going to stay out pretty late. She didn't see him smirk over YeongSaeng's cheeky reply to his exit.

The first thing Yuri managed to keep up with as the situation shifted around her was Donghae placing her on the ground and holding out a leather jacket. "Put this on," he said with his signature contagious grin. "We're going for a ride."

"Where to?" Yuri asked curiously, but not unhappily. Donghae's presence made her feel even worse in a way, making her think about what she was losing in the morning; but at the same time, she couldn't help but to smile while he was around.

Shrugging, Donghae replied, "I don't know yet."

Yuri just accepted the statement; Donghae was probably teasing her again. "What's with the jacket?" she asked slipping on her helmet.

"Tonight we're going to be going much faster than usual, it's just a precaution," Donghae explained, mounting the bike as he adjusted his helmet. "Come on, sit in front of me."

Yuri complied without question. Donghae checked his passenger's helmet over, though by now he was moderately sure that Jay knew what he was doing, and then he reached around to grip the controls. With his head beside Jay's he said, "Now, put your hands on top of mine. Squeeze right for faster and left for slower, okay? You get to pick tonight, once we get outside the city the controls belong to you. Trust me, this will have you feeling better in a heartbeat."

Now, Yuri understood. He'd been worried about her because she'd been crying.

The thought of his concern made her smile again. She nodded that she understood and Donghae kicked the behemoth to life and took off.

He started out at their usual street speed, kicking it up little by little as they neared the edge of the city. Once they were outside the city limits, screaming along through the dark, he waited for instruction from Jay.

As this was already much faster than Yuri had ever gone before, she wasn't very eager to ramp things up. Slowly though, she tested it out, asking Donghae for just a bit more. It was sort of cool, like she was the one driving.

She didn't begin asking for a lot of speed until her thoughts drifted back to how she was never going to be able to do something like this again. Once her mind was going along that line it was easy to push the bike faster and faster. Donghae had been right; there was nothing quite like whizzing through the night at high speed when you were upset. It was uniquely therapeutic.

While she thought through everything just as she had on the couch, she felt tears prickle in her eyes. The difference between wallowing on the couch and riding through them on the bike was that once she thought about them once, the pain of the thought didn't resurface even if the same thought came up again. It was like they were going too quickly for the sadness to keep up. It felt so good after an evening of sedentary self-pity.

Eventually it felt like she had worked though everything she needed to, and she asked Donghae to slow down. He was able to respond instantly, having wrapped himself tightly around his dongsaeng in silent support. He could feel Jay's every breath though his jacket; felt his every twitch as any especially painful thought struck him. He was able to give Jay a solid support that he could tell his dongsaeng appreciated by the way Jay bowed his back into Donghae's chest as they rode along.

Donghae had been taking them in a large loop of the countryside as Jay mentally worked through whatever had been bothering him. When the young singer had decided he'd had enough, Donghae was able to quickly get them back inside the city limits, find a Baskin Robins along their route, and settle Jay with a cup of moose-tracks and caramel syrup on a bench overlooking a colorfully back-lit street fountain. Donghae sat beside him with his own ice cream treat, a cup of chocolate chip and fudge.

They chatted about all kinds of things, though nothing even close to the fact that something had driven Yuri to tears earlier. Donghae didn't press it initially, knowing that it would only make things worse. There was another topic that if not carefully managed would make things worse as well; MinYeon.

This one however, Donghae couldn't avoid talking about. Jay asked about why he'd gotten home so early after a dinner with his girlfriend. He usually stayed out well past midnight with her, so his early arrival was quite obviously out of character.

If Donghae told the truth, about how he'd broken up with her and simply left her at the restaurant, Jay would most certainly worry about how he was feeling. Jay would try to make Donghae feel better when the catalyst of breaking up with the girl had been to enable Donghae to make _Jay_ feel better.

No, that story could wait until tomorrow.

For now he said, "She had some things to see to, so we couldn't take as long together tonight."

"I'm sorry."

"It's no big deal, really," Donghae said. Then, taking a step into dangerous territory, he mentioned, "Actually, tonight I'd rather be here. You seemed pretty down earlier and in desperate need of chocolate."

Yuri had wondered when this question was coming. "I guess I just have a lot to think about with Yuri going home and everything."

"And the person in the hospital, the one she was visiting?"

"Good as new, so I'm told, and heading home real soon," Yuri replied.

Donghae nodded slowly. That was one weight off his mind; at least Jay wouldn't have to worry over someone who had been left alone in Japan. His sister had no doubt taken good care of this mysterious person.

"Do you think you'll be able to see them before they leave Asia?"

"Yeah, I should be able to, for a little bit at least."

That was another tally for the 'good news' side of the board. It did confuse Donghae a bit though, seeing as the good news was outweighing the bad news so far. Yet there was something that had made Jay cry earlier. Admittedly, Jinki's voice made _A Simple Goodbye_ into an agonizingly sad song; but there must have been some other catalyst. Jay had been fine at the other concerts he'd performed in, and each had Jinki's solo on the playlist.

He decided to ask just one more question. "You know you can talk to me, right? If anything's bothering you, you can tell me."

"I know," Yuri replied, horribly guilty. She suddenly felt like she might not be able to finish her ice cream as guilt swirled her stomach around. For a moment she considered telling him everything, but the fact that she hadn't already, and it was so close to being all over, prevented her. It would be better for Jay in the long-run, she thought, not telling anyone else.

Donghae noted Jay's sudden quiet and nudged his shoulder affectionately. "You can tell me anything, but you don't _have _to," Donghae amended quietly.

Yuri smiled, still feeling horrible; Donghae was so sweet. "I know," Yuri replied nudging his shoulder in return. She pushed at just the right moment to accidently send Donghae's nose into a spoonful of chocolate fudge and vanilla ice cream.

They both burst out laughing at the sight.

Donghae shoved Jay in revenge, purposely timed to achieve the same effect. Jay managed to dodge his first attempt, but he hadn't been expecting a second.

Yuri laughed as she licked away the stickiness. For the next few minutes she tried to get her own revenge, but was rendered unsuccessful by Donghae's diligence. She did manage to finish the rest of her ice cream though, because their little game had relieved some of the guilty tension in her stomach. She wasn't sure exactly, but it seemed like they hung around the fountain for another hour before using it to wash off their hands and faces and then heading home at a leisurely pace.

When they got back to the dorms, Yuri found herself unwilling to let go of Donghae's hands when he tried to get off of the motorcycle. She'd put hers back on top of his at some point during their ride home even though she wasn't asking him for speed anymore. He laughed and slipped his leg over the back without pulling his hands out from under Jay's, though he easily could have. With one arm firmly around Jay's shoulders, Donghae lifted Jay off of the bike and half carried him to the elevator. Inside, Jay buried his face in Donghae's shoulder and gave him the tightest hug Donghae had ever received. "Pahnk vu," Jay murmured into his shirt as the elevator rose to their dorm's level.

Only once the duo was back inside the dormitory that had become more of a home to QuaszauR's members than their real homes had even been, did Jay let Donghae go. Getting a very sleepy Jay to snatch his pj's and head off to take a shower, Donghae ruffled his hair affectionately. "Goo-bye," Jay slurred quietly.

"Good_bye_? Don't you mean good _night_, sleepyhead?" Donghae said with a quiet chuckle. "Come on, don't take too long, you need your rest."

Jay nodded as Donghae pushed him into the small room on the far side of the kitchen.

Yuri took her last shower in the QuaszauR dorm with care. Meticulously, she scrubbed all the grit out of her hair and from under her fingernails, which she was finally allowing to grow out again. The nail polish on her toenails from so long ago had been practically obliterated by the boots and high heeled sneakers, but it was still sort of pretty for her to look at as she finally was able to shave. Yuri used the girls' melon scented body wash, loving the sweet smell of the foam. She also used Sweet's conditioner, also melon-fresh, and so much nicer to her delicate hair than the men's all-in-one wash.

Then she slipped into her room, her_brother's_ room she reminded herself. She didn't go straight to bed. Instead she stayed up, just looking around at the room she'd gotten so used to being in so quickly. She was definitely going to miss this. The place, the people, the activities; at her university there was nothing like it for her. She wasn't sure how long she stayed up, but she had most certainly turned her light off for the night before Donghae had turned off the one in the common room, as the light crept in though the crack under her door, _Jay's _door.

Donghae had been sidetracked. When he'd gotten Jay home well after midnight, he'd planned to let Jay take the first shower and then after his own go _straight_ to bed himself. It was late and they needed their rest. However, Jay took a terribly long shower. Donghae didn't blame him; hot water was as necessary a cure-all as ice cream or a motorcycle ride. YeongSaeng was quite pleased by the turn of events as it gave him time to slip unnoticed out of his room and quietly drag Donghae back downstairs.

"What happened?" he demanded with eager immediacy.

"I took Jay out for a ride, outside the city," Donghae explained. "And we stopped for ice cream on the way back."

YeongSaeng nodded. He hadn't expected anything less from his friend. There was one thing he'd been moderately surprised at though. "You got away from MinYeon awfully quick. Why was that?"

"Dara mostly. She was worried about Jay and texted me, and . . . I left," Donghae shorthanded.

YeongSaeng was impressed. "How'd she take _that_?"

"Not well," Donghae admitted. He was fairly guilty that he had broken up with her in such a rude and abrupt manner. His relief at having been around when Jay needed to be cheered up though, more than eclipsed any guilt. "We've broken up."

A long low whistle escaped YeongSaeng. "For good?"

"Most likely."

"Does this mean you'll admit that you're in love with Jay?"

Donghae didn't respond immediately. He remembered how MinYeon had jumped to the same conclusion instantly too, and what she'd said in regards to it. "Maybe," he replied to YeongSaeng, who was waiting patiently for his friend to sort himself out. "You know, it does make sense. I've been your friend since we were five and your attachment to Kyu has never once bothered me . . . And I guess Jay . . ."

"You don't need to guess," YeongSaeng supplied. "He makes you happy, anyone can see that. He makes you happier than MinYeon has ever been able to bring you down."

Donghae thought a moment before nodding. "He's some sort of little miracle worker."

"So . . . are you gonna tell him?"

"Of course not," Donghae replied promptly. "He's so happy with Dara, and she's obviously very concerned about him, to be willing to let someone else handle this problem with him. I'm not going to break that up."

YeongSaeng shrugged. "Whatever you want; but you know he's been wearing that necklace you bought him every day. I think he even wears it in the shower."

"HeeJin said it would be fine."

The dots connected instantly. "You've been wearing yours in the shower too, haven't you? That's a little weird, I'm not gonna lie."

"Like you've ever even thought about taking the one that matches KyuJeon's off, and that ring hasn't left your finger once either," Donghae retorted.

YeongSaeng pouted. "Yes, it has. I wore it on the other hand yesterday."

"Oh, yeah, that's _such _a distinction."

Giving up, YeongSaeng said, "It's your choice, I suppose. But I think you should at least think about telling him."

"And _you_ should think about telling KyuJeon."

"Fair point." YeongSaeng's half smile faded a bit as he said, "But we've talked about this before. Kyu's sweet and cute, and more girly than a lot of people, even in this business, but he'd still think it's weird."

"And Jay wouldn't? Jay-who-_currently_-has-a-_girlfriend_-on-the-straight-and-narrow, wouldn't think it's weird?"

YeongSaeng smirked. "Not _so_ narrow, he's perfectly okay with me and Kyu. On the other hand, Kyu's skin crawls when we watch dramas that even suggest it's possible."

Donghae shrugged and the two went back upstairs after a bit more bickering as to who would have worse luck in a confession. Jay was already in bed. Donghae slid under his own covers after a quick shower in rather cool water, thinking to wake up especially early so as to beat Jay to his café breakfast. He needed to eat better than just a muffin the mornings; and Donghae planned to see to it that he _got_ better.

The next morning, Yuri woke before dawn. The girls of Sweet and Jaebi were all up early enough to wish her well as they gave quick and quiet goodbyes and hugs. They each made sure that Yuri had something from her time with QuaszauR, from the clothes they had gotten out shopping to a signed copy of every album they'd ever released. And then it was time for her to go, when she'd normally just be waking up.

JiEun and MinJi were sent back to bed along with SeungMi and Jaebi. Dara and SooHyun however remained awake; they may as well have gotten up then seeing as Dara would be impossible to wake were she to go back to sleep, and SooHyun needed to be up for their cover story to seem plausible.

Yuri met Manager Ma and his little toaster of a car outside. He was surprisingly completely awake. It was most likely due to Yuna's rampaging and a high dose of caffeine. Still, he was plenty able to drive Yuri to a neat little café that was just waking up in the most fashionable shopping district in Seoul.

She recognized the bag she had brought from Maryland sitting out by one of the tables and made a beeline for it as Manager Ma explained that the other two were probably getting the food. Nodding, Yuri sat down to wait, glancing through the window.

Yuna's tall and slender figure was easy to pick out among the shadows. And walking towards the door beside her was another form that Yuri would have recognized anywhere.

Jay.

Jay was home, at last.

Yuri didn't even notice her movement as she jumped up from the table. Jay handed his tray, stacked high with breakfast food, to Yuna, and charged towards his sister. Their reunion, after five long years of phone calls and emails, made even Coordinator Yuna a little teary eyed. Her fiancé was outright balling, his square glasses with their thick black frames were fogging over as he sniffled and wailed with joy. Everyone ignored him as he continued to cry throughout breakfast.

Jay was briefed on everything that had happened in his absence. He in turn gave praising critiques of Yuri pop-star replacement abilities, recommending that when this all blew over that she audition for a spot in JYG Entertainment. Yuna seconded his recommendations; with her own praise at Yuri's ability to handle unfamiliar situations.

Their breakfast was leisurely, but every moment was packed with important information sharing. The food wasn't bad either, they nibbled their way through a dozen different plates of breakfasty items, with refills and new dishes constantly being brought over for them by the still-whimpering Manager Ma.

Meanwhile, back at the QuaszauR dorm, the hard work was already beginning. Someone had to explain Jay's absence to the rest of the band, particularly YoungJae and Donghae. They were both very concerned, and both were up very early for them.

SooHyun and Dara would have thought that they would have had at least an hour to discuss the exact details of their cover story. Instead, barely ten minutes after SeungMi closed her door to catch another few hours of sleep, Donghae's whipped open with more energy than either girl still more or less awake cared to deal with.

He was surprised to see them up, but he didn't feel too concerned with their presence until SooHyun stopped him from going out the door by saying, "If you're looking for Jay, he's with Coordinator Yuna. Something's come up and he's doing a favor for her."

"What?"

"Manager Ma came by a little while ago and said that Yuna had picked Jay up from the café across the street." SooHyun elaborated.

Donghae asked, "Is he gonna be able to get it finished up quickly?" If not, Donghae had worries that he wouldn't get to see Yuri before she left for America; this was one of QuaszauR's very few days of near freedom. Especially with the tour gearing up.

"I doubt it," Dara said with a sigh. "And I wanted to spend the day with him."

When YoungJae came out, he joined Donghae in the "where's Jay now" interrogation. Neither could get a satisfying answer from the two girls, though it was mostly Yuna that they blamed for their unreasonable lack of information. She was the one that had taken Jay for no reason, or at least without telling anyone the reason.

Donghae and YoungJae were the only ones of QuaszauR's members frustrated to the point of annoying the others with Jay's disappearance. By now, everyone was used to Jay's random acts of disappearance. However, the leader was supposed to know where everyone was at all times, and Donghae . . . well it was _Jay_ that was missing and no one really expected him to sit quietly while Jay was out on his own.

YeongSaeng and KyuJeon worked to keep him busy with video games. Dara tried to keep Donghae from calling Jay, citing that Jay was probably very busy with whatever Yuna was making him do. Everyone else made an effort to avoid him.

After practice, Donghae slipped out for a run. Most of QuaszauR knew that it was the worst time to go for a run in the heat of Seoul's summer, but no one could think of a reasonable excuse to stop him. Donghae did actually take a run through the city. He ran as he was deciding whether or not he should give Jay a call. When his burning lungs forced him to a stop, Donghae had decided that it couldn't hurt to try.

Jay didn't pick up.

He'd sort of expected it, but it still wasn't fun to be ignored. He felt so bad that he'd done the same to Jay, and Jay had needed to get a hold of him for more than just an urge to say hello.

He tried again a few hours later.

Jay still didn't answer.

By six pm and Donghae's fourth call, the singer was starting to get very antsy.

This time, though Jay still didn't pick up, he did respond. It was a text message, short and to the point. _I'm_ _Sorry_. When Donghae tried to call back immediately, Jay's phone had been turned off and he was completely unreachable.

Yuri felt horribly guilty for turning her phone off. Donghae had been very explicit when he'd ordered her to pick up _immediately_ when he called. And now, not only had she ignored four calls, she'd turned off her phone entirely.

After their breakfast, Jay and Yuri, with Yuna and Ma tagging along, had toured Seoul together. It was a pleasant afternoon and Yuri had been planning on doing so since her first day in Korea. She and Jay had so much to catch up on.

By dinner time though, Yuri thought to start wrapping things up, it would take them so long to say goodbye she knew they needed to start now.

She mussed Jay's hair up a little, to match the style currently associated with 'Jay' more accurately. Luckily, it had grown out while he was in the hospital, and it looked like 'Jay' had simply gotten a haircut. 'He' had needed a trim anyway.

"So here's your new phone," Yuri said, handing it over by about eleven pm. They were standing about a block away from the dorms and Jay was getting ready to make his entrance. They'd worked out every kink in their cover story, so that's Jay's complaint of Yuna's slave labor, and Yuna's complaints of a lazy worker meshed together perfectly. "And if you want to change _Pretty Girl_'s choreography for the tour, like everyone's been talking about, you should show it to YoungJae, like now. If you don't he'll probably kill you when you _do_ get around to it."

Jay nodded. "And you said that you were pretending to have a hurt knee, right? So the first few back flips have to be a bit shaky?"

"Yep," Yuri said, pleased that her brother had been paying attention. "Oh, and by the way, you're dating Dara."

"_WHAT_?"

Jay's expression was priceless. It made Yuri completely certain she had made the right call about his regard for Dara. "Jae-Ra, I think the fans call you, though it's not the most popular couple's nickname. It just doesn't quite roll off the tongue."

"Me . . . and Dara . . . Dating?" Jay was dazed for the next few moments, trying to rationalize this development in his mind.

"Oh, you'll be fine," Yuri said. "She really seems to like you."

The siblings hugged one last time and gave last minute advice to each other. Yuri's plane was going to leave in the morning and she would stay the night with Yuna until then. Jay was on his own now.

Before they parted ways though, Yuna brought up the necklace Yuri was wearing. "You've been wearing it every day, I think people will notice that it's gone," she said, adding, "You two look exactly the same, sort of. It's disconcerting actually. How you look so different and yet so similar . . . and now Yuri's the same height as you are Jay, so that shouldn't be a surprise. But the necklace . . . it's too much a part of Jay's look for its absence to go unnoted."

Yuri fiddled with the locket hanging from her throat. Donghae had given it to her, to _her_, and not Jay; she wanted to say. Her throat tightened at the thought of having to part with it. It wasn't his to have . . . but Donghae _hadn't_ bought it for her. He'd bought it for Jay, who had happened to be Yuri at the time. Donghae didn't know that though.

Reluctantly, she unclasped the locket and handed it over to Jay. "This thing is hideous, _way _too sparkly for me. Why on earth did you buy it?"

"She didn't, Donghae did," Yuna explained.

Jay understood immediately. "Ah . . . sorry. I won't take it then."

"But you _have_ to take it," Yuri replied sadly. "Yuna-unnie's right. I've worn it too much for it to suddenly be gone."

Yuna tried to get the topic off the hard emotional issues by refocusing the pair on the work aspect of things. "Tomorrow you have practice, and you and the rest of Action are scheduled for an appearance on another variety show. It'll be a dance off sort of thing, which I know you can handle, but it wouldn't hurt to spend some extra time brushing up on everything."

"Dara can help you with that," Yuri said. "Spend as much time with her as possible, and Jaebi and SeungMi. The girls can also be helpful, but stick to mainly Dara. She's gonna pull the 'I-never-spend-ALONE-time-with-my-boyfriend' card to give you an excuse to avoid everyone."

"It'll be a bit rough to begin with, because I'm sure everyone's going to be a bit miffed at you, even the ones who know," Yuna said.

Yuri amended, "_Especially_ the ones that know. You were really an idiot this time, Jay. How hard would it have been to just tell everyone from the very beginning?"

"If I couldn't perform at my debut concert, it would have been all over for me," Jay replied. "Even if the reason was a legitimate one, which this wasn't, I'd never have been able to stay with QuaszauR."

They bickered about Jay's idiocy for another ten minutes before finally saying goodbye for good. Yuri and Yuna left for Yuna's apartment complex. Manager Ma got to spend the night in a hotel. And Jay took a deep breath before heading back inside the home he hadn't seen in three months.

Things started going horribly wrong for him instantly.

The phone Yuri had given him had been turned off when she handed it over. He corrected the situation as he entered the driveway of QuaszauR's dorm. The moment it was on, it was ringing. Donghae-hyungnim was calling. Jay knew he would have to quickly get used to being on familiar terms with the man he admired so much, as Yuri had gotten fairly close to him in the short time she'd had as 'Jay'.

Taking a deep breath, Jay answered the phone.

"Why was your phone off?" Donghae demanded. "I understand not answering, but turning it off? And then leaving it off for hours? What were you thinking?"

"Yuna-noona kept me very busy," Jay replied. "I didn't have the opportunity to answer, and hearing it ring just made me feel guilty that I had to ignore you! Our coordi-noona is a slave driver in disguise, I swear."

Donghae grumbled a bit, but he'd been exposed to Yuna's whims before. Jay's story could have easily checked out. "Where are you now?"

"I'm just outside the dorms."

"Finally! I thought Yuna was going to keep you over night!"

Jay responded, "Why are you up so late?"

"Just hanging around with YeongSaeng and KyuJeon, you know," Donghae replied nonchalantly. Behind him in the common room, YeongSaeng rolled his eyes. Donghae had been practically pacing all day. "So what exactly did Yuna have you doing all day?"

Launching into their make-believe horror story, Jay found himself face to face with Donghae in a matter of minutes. The elevator doors rolled open and there he was. Jay almost had a heart-attack. He now had to use banmal face-to-face with one of the people he admired most in the world, _and _convincingly act like his sister acting like him.

It was a lot to keep track of.

He was not at all confident in his ability to pull it off, especially as Donghae was giving him the most intense look he'd ever been subject too.

Donghae noticed something was off about Jay the moment he laid eyes on him. It must have been how the new haircut framed his face because Donghae's mind brought up a perfect picture of Jay that matched the person standing before him. But there was still something strange. Like the fact that his hair was now only a few inches longer than it had been before he went to Japan somehow changed who he was entirely.

Trying to brush off the disconcerting feeling, Donghae hung up his phone and slung his arm around the shoulders of the miraculously growing young singer. After having gained what seemed like, but couldn't possibly be, a foot in height, Jay had seemed to level out. He was no longer the perfect size to be Donghae's armrest, but the affectionate gesture was far from impossible.

"Come on, tell me the rest of what Yuna made you do," Donghae prompted, steering Jay into the elevator.

Jay's first night with QuaszauR was at least as stressful as Yuri's had been. He was acting a part he didn't know in front of the very people who had helped Yuri do the same. Jay could handle being on stage, it was the one on one interactions that traditionally caused his shyness to show.

Meanwhile, Yuri was sipping hot cocoa in Yuna's big bright condo, wondering how things were going for her brother. Everyone who knew about the switch had her real cell phone number, so all she could really do was wait for news. In theory, everyone would have been asleep before Jay'd gotten home, so news shouldn't be forthcoming until at least the next day.

Knowing that didn't stop Yuri from staring at her silent phone as it rested on the coffee table in front of her while she drank her hot chocolate. "Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be fine," Yuna said sitting down across from her. She slid a narrow white envelope across the table to Yuri adding, "I really wish I could just give you an account transfer for this, but that'll raise too many eyebrows. This way it looks like Jay took the money to buy himself something nice. Which is not a bad idea for you to try."

"Money?"

Yuna nodded. "You didn't think we would make you do all of this without any kind of compensation did you? This is Jay's salary for the time you spent as him, without his share of the album sales, though."

A bit reluctant, Yuri took the envelope at Yuna's insistence. Peeking inside Yuri's eyes bulged. This tiny envelope contained more money in high denomination bills than Yuri had ever held in her hand. The next time Yuri came to visit, Jay was paying for _everything_.

She thanked Yuna and finished her hot chocolate before curling up in the bed in the popstar coordinator's guest room.

Yuri woke up late.

For her.

She was still in plenty of time to get to her plane, but she'd missed her usual café time. It was for the best though, because if she had woken up early enough, she would have made it all the way there before remembering that she couldn't be seen hanging around anymore. Even just thinking about it over breakfast at the airport with Yuna was nearly unbearable; eating the same food as she would have in the café only made her nostalgia worse.

All packed up and ready to go, Yuri gave Yuna a hug, thanked her for her help, asked her to watch over Jay, and made her way though security. She was at her gate in plenty of time. Taking a seat that looked out the window at a sleepy Seoul coming-to for the day, she fiddled with the ticket in her hand, bored.

After about ten minutes, she realized that she wasn't just bored. She was anxious. She wanted to know how Jay was doing. He should be in practice by now. He didn't know the steps to Donghae's _Beautiful_. Dara had promised to get him out of doing it until she had time to teach him, but Yuri's stomach still twanged with anxiety like the strings an over tightened banjo. Her thoughts were about as unbearable to listen to as such an instrument would be as well, lending little to her peace of mind.

So many what if's flooded through the tiny little crack in the blockade she'd built in her mind that it soon became impossible to focus on anything except her worries about the band and her brother. The boarding for her plane began and she diligently stood up and dragged the cinderblocks of her feet down the long hallway to her plane. She'd fastened her seatbelt and was trying to ignore the world outside as she waited for her plane to take off.

And then _Beautiful _came on as her iPod shuffled her songs around.

By the second line of the chorus, Yuri'd somehow rationalized what she was about to do. She was up and running out of the plane with her carry-on slung over her shoulder at the most precarious angle as flight attendants yelled after her. The door wasn't quite closed yet, but the walkway had already disconnected and it was a dizzying step to get back to the terminal. Once on solid ground though, Yuri was flat out running.

Her bag would be shipped to her dorm and her kind but rather annoyingly neat roommate would ensure that it was stuffed under Yuri's bed until she arrived. Lisa had the horribly annoying trait of expecting the worst, so that Yuri may have missed her plane and her bag had made it without its owner would have been a thought that had occurred to her long before now. And since Yuna had given her Jay's impressive salary, Yuri had enough money to get herself a new wardrobe, an incognito place to stay, and even another plane ticket . . . eventually.

There wasn't really a plan at this point, but if Yuri had been asked to say what it would have been, were she in a planning mood, she would have said to stay a few days to just make sure that everything went smoothly. Or to at least be close enough to perhaps help if something went wrong.

The first place Yuri went after she got out of the airport was HeeJin-unnie's store.

The gorgeous woman was working with a customer when Yuri walked nervously though the door. This whole thing had seemed less and less like a good idea on the cab ride from the airport to her store.

HeeJin though, was delighted to see the person she knew as Jay tip-toeing in wearing a dress that flattered her figure almost as well as the one she'd hoped to give over the time Donghae had dragged the girl in wearing a ratty old sweatshirt. The store owner broke away from her by-appointment customer, she was so excited. She gave the girl a hug and introduced her with a wink to the clients as the dear caretaker of her favorite dongsaeng. They smiled, knowing of HeeJin's little Donghae after having been the woman's loyal clients since long before she'd graduated. They were almost as pleased he'd found someone to keep him out of trouble as HeeJin was.

They finished up their business quickly, the middle aged couple was sure that their little HeeHee, the crazy art-student who had been their neighbor for twenty-five years and who had parents that they were quite fond of by this point, would want to spend her afternoon with the girl, whoever she was, that had somehow tamed Donghae.

As soon as they had left, HeeJin called her one other appointmented client for the day and rescheduled. Then with the shop closed up and some sort of very tasty tea that Yuri couldn't identify in a mug for each, she turned her big brown eyes on Yuri. The gaze was expectant, imploring, and conspiratorial. She didn't say anything, Donghae had learned his tricks from the best after all.

It didn't take anything though, no subtlety or patience, for Yuri to spill everything. All HeeJin had to do was sit them down together and just _look_ at the girl. Within seconds, she was sharing her story and the girls talked over the glass coffee table for hours without pause. Particularly about Donghae.

"He came here yesterday, you know, just briefly," HeeJin mentioned. "Looking for you. I think he's quite smitten."

"He's not, he's got MinYeon-ssi," Yuri protested.

The two came to an impasse of shrugging while holding their own personal opinions as the truth, but the topic hung around their conversation for the entire time Yuri wasn't distracting HeeJin with a discussion of fashion. Seeing as her suitcase was halfway home by now, and since she had to get new clothes anyway, she may as well get the most fashionable ones she could. HeeJin was delighted to set her up with a new wardrobe and went as far as strong arming Yuri into staying in the loft above the store, rent free, until she decided to actually go home. Her secret plot was to make sure that it wouldn't be a lack of funds that sent Yuri home, as HeeJin was still scheming to get Donghae to realize he was in love with her.

Yuri took her offer without any suspicions, and soon she was set up in a neat little room that had windows you could see out of, but not into, that overlooked the store's main floor. HeeJin often stayed there when she was in the middle of a big project, but at the moment it was perfectly suited to Yuri's situation. With HeeJin buzzing about, giving her more free clothes than Yuri thought she could wear in a lifetime, Yuri was sent out to do something about her poor hair. The style was just awful on her after two months of growing out that had not been helped by the severe lack of the proper application of a good conditioner.

The perfect place to get it sorted out popped into Yuri's mind immediately. Heo Ajuma's place, the one Dara had taken her to what felt like ages ago. It took Yuri a while to figure out how to get back there, adding even more to the illusion that a long time had passed.

Kahi and JiYeon were both there again, and both were delighted to see Yuri walking around in a dress. Heo Ajuma was as well, but she hid her pleasure with long strings of reprimanding words that were lost on Yuri as the two apprentices worked to repair the damage that had been done while Yuri was with QuaszauR. Highlights, extensions, styling, and a manicure later, Yuri walked out of the shop a new woman.

She felt pretty for the first time since the Christmas 'gala' at her University.

The three people who had helped her into such a mood were still completely in the dark about the situation that had led to her previous condition. They hadn't asked the details and Yuri hadn't wanted to explain them, so the arrangement worked mutually well for them.

Meanwhile, Jay was trying to get along with the family he hadn't seen in three months. It was a rocky first practice, to say the least. Speaking exclusively with Dara, Jaebi, and SeungMi helped. Sort of.

It kept Jay from saying anything horribly out of character, but it made the ones who didn't know even harder to keep from worrying. Even with the girls of Sweet running interference, Donghae, YeongSaeng, and the others still got enough face-time with the other Kim sibling to find hundreds of little things to worry about. YoungJae wondered quietly to Kihun and JongHyun if he was fighting with Donghae again.

Neither of them knew, but it didn't look like it because he wasn't avoiding Donghae. It just looked like Jay'd had the rug pulled out from under him, again.

Donghae was practically going mad.

Jay was back to the sorry state he'd been in right after his debut. Donghae had been so certain he was making permanent progress, especially the night he'd broken up with MinYeon. Then Jay had seemed normal, like he'd finally come to terms with whatever he was dealing with. And then Yuna had butted in and Jay'd missed his opportunity to see Yuri and apparently things were spiraling away and Donghae had never felt that he'd had less control of a situation before and Jay's regression was scaring him so badly that he could hardly think straight.

Sitting though a few rants from his best friend was something that YeongSaeng was perfectly willing to do. He was worried about Jay too.

The first week was the worst. During the music show performances Jay loosened up a bit; he began talking to Jinki again. The development calmed everyone, at least slightly. Jinki had been Jay's closest companion before his debut, so the even uninformed members of QuaszauR counted this as a good sign.

Yuri didn't inform her brother that she was still in Seoul until a week after her plane was supposed to have carted her back to the United States. She called him about an hour before QuaszauR would normally have a schedule. It woke Jay up.

The change in sleeping habits had been the only real tell that Yuri and Jay had traded places. Dara was willing to swear by it. She'd only noticed the first time that 'Jay' wasn't who he said he was because of Yuri's phone, and that was no longer a problem.

Jay was still unconvinced, as he mentioned over lunch with the two most important girls in his life. The two popstars were off until the afternoon, when they had a variety show appearance scheduled. Yuri was having a great time watching the little couple be cute. "If even _Dara_ didn't notice that I'd replaced the love of her life, _Donghae_ won't have a clue that I've been replaced."

"She's not half as in love with me as he is with you," Jay protested.

Dara agreed, "He's right, you know. Donghae's practically sure he's found his soul mate, I'm just a girl with a great boyfriend."

"Are you worried about it?" Yuri asked.

"Not really," Jay said. "He's a little stressed out by the fact that I'm so quiet again, but I think he'll be fine in another week or so."

The pair watched Yuri carefully for her reaction. She knew they were, so she swallowed her concerns and asked, "What do you guys have up for this week?"

"Sweet's taking over a morning radio show, we've got three weeks of hosting that until the tour starts," Dara said. "And we're going on a few variety shows, as special guests."

"Action's got a variety show to deal with too; we've got a dance competition thing with a few other bands," Jay added.

Dara finished up, "And we have the music shows, and practice for the tour."

"Then I'm guessing that another lunch with you guys is a no, right?"

Waving away her friend's concerns, Dara said, "Sweet's radio show ends at noon and Jay's dance thing shouldn't go past one except for tomorrow."

"And Dara's variety show appearances will only upset that occasionally," Jay added.

Yuri thought it was adorable how they traded off sharing the information; it wasn't quite finishing each other's sentences, but it was close.

They went on chatting for a while longer before the conversation turned again to Jay's cover. "Donghae does seem really stressed, what with worrying about us _and_ working on _I Must be Crazy_, which _still_ isn't done," Dara mentioned, when Yuri asked about how everyone was handling the upcoming tour. For everyone else it was hectic business as usual as they worked to iron out every detail to make the shows perfect.

"It's not so bad," Jay soothed. "It's just because of the tour; YoungJae, JongHyun, _and _SooHyun have been riding him mercilessly about it. They want it for the first show we play. Donghae swears it won't be finished by then though, no matter what the leaders try to do to him."

Yuri nodded and a slightly awkward silence followed as Dara and Jay tried to gauge Yuri's reaction and Yuri tried to think of something to ask about that wasn't Donghae.

Making a foray into dangerous territory, despite the already less than comfortable atmosphere, Dara wondered, "Maybe we could just tell him? Or even the rest of the band. With Jay back, YoungJae has no reason to report this whole mess. And it would –"

"No," Yuri said quietly. "He might not report it, but there will still be consequences. The others won't trust any of us again. They might go so far as to question SooHyun's leadership. I don't want to risk it, and I don't want to upset the balance of your family."

Dara wanted to protest, to come to her friend's defense and say that everyone would forgive her easily, but Jay wisely prevented her from doing so. Yuri was certain she wouldn't be forgiven so easily, and though Jay disagreed whole-heartily, trying to convince his sister would only end up in an argument. He'd lived with her long enough to know her stubborn streak inside and out. There was no winning this fight.

It wasn't long after that when Jay and Dara had to head back to the dorms. They promised to stay in touch, and perhaps pop over to HeeJin's for breakfast? Jay would never be up in time, but Dara would definitely be there. The pair headed home content, though both were wondering if they ought to just tell everyone without Yuri's consent.

Dara was for it.

Jay was not, though he wanted to be.

"If we did that, even if Yuri was forgiven instantly, she'd never forgive us," Jay mentioned. "The whole family trust thing has been a problem for her, for good reason, but still . . . And if for some reason, Donghae decided to walk away, even temporarily, I don't think she could handle it."

Dara pouted. "But he would never do that! He broke up with MinYeon for her."

"He did? When?"

"Right before you got back."

Jay was still in disbelief, of every celebrity couple he'd ever heard of, Min-Hae was the longest running of them all. "Are you sure?"

"Of course," Dara said with a sniff at not being believed. "He told YeongSaeng, who told KyuJeon, who told Jaebi, who told SeungMi, who told me, SooHyun, MinJi, and JiEun. By now I'd guess that you and Jinki are the only ones that don't know: Jinki because he's our resident idiot and would tell you; and you, because Donghae didn't want to worry you, well _his_ 'Jay'."

"Still . . . I think even Donghae would need some time to process the whole thing, just to wrap his head around it," Jay reasoned. "Anyone would. But Yuri's been left behind too many times to be able to wait patiently if Donghae needed time."

Dara, who was only partially privy to the painful past that neither Kim sibling willingly spoke of, continued to pout. "It's just so frustrating! I hate not being able to do anything, I feel so useless."

"I know," Jay said. He brushed Dara's hair back and gave her a light kiss on the forehead. "But all we can do for now is wait and hope that something happens."

They didn't have to wait long.

The next day _something_ happened. It was not something good.

After the filming for Action's dace-off variety bit had ended for the day, the five planned to head their separate ways for the afternoon, as per the recent usual. KyuJeon and YeongSaeng had their not-quite-couple things to do, Jay wanted to run off and meet Dara, Chansung wanted to do the same with JiEun, Donghae had a song to write, and JongHyun had some administrative things to handle for the tour.

MinYeon was waiting at the door of JYG headquarters for Donghae to show up on his motorcycle. She was less than pleased to note Jay sitting behind the man she still considered to be hers. Donghae spotted her immediately and years of conditioning took over as he waved good bye to Jay and walked over to the girl he'd rather never deal with again.

"You haven't called me in three weeks," MinYeon complained.

Donghae sighed. "Why would I have needed to call you?"

"Because you're my boyfriend," MinYeon replied simply. "I know you weren't in your right mind before, and I forgive you for that, but to not even call?"

"I was perfectly in my right mind," Donghae retorted, growing angry much more quickly than he had while he was resigned to put up with MinYeon's foolishness. "And I still am, and I don't care if you forgive me or not, but we are not dating anymore and I do not have to call you every other day."

This threw MinYeon off for a beat. She'd expected him to come running back to her with his tail between his legs. She was Kwon MinYeon for heaven's sake! How could he possibly not want to date her? What was _Jay_ that made _her_ the less attractive option? She lost her cool, if she'd ever possessed one, in an instant. "But he doesn't even like you! He's going out with Dara! Why do want _him_? He's such a wimp! And shouldn't you be more opposed to being . . . ugh, I can't even say it! It's shameful!"

Donghae gave up trying to reason with her. He knew her moods, and this was not a good one. Normally, he would have waded through it, but now he didn't have to. "MinYeon, we are_ not_ dating, and we will not _be_ dating in the future. I'm done making myself miserable to make you happy. We're over, and that is _not_ going to change."

Donghae spun on his heel and walked away, leaving MinYeon spluttering curses and nonsense after him. He froze barely five feet away; not from anything MinYeon was saying, but because Jay was staring wide-eyed at him from across the quad. He was well within earshot.

"Dara, I'm gonna have to call you back, something's come up," Jay said quickly into his phone. Hanging up hurriedly, Jay watched Donghae approach warily. The older singer's expression was almost sheepish. Jay mumbled, "You . . . and MinYeon-ssi . . ."

With a definite embarrassed shame, Donghae replied, "We broke up a few weeks ago, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. You must be worried, but I'm fine really."

Jay just sort of nodded, wracking his brain for a guess at how Yuri would respond to this news. Now that they'd had it out like this, it would be on the internet for sure. Jay's only hope was that Yuri didn't take to stalking gossip sites as he had. He ended up just sort of standing there, looking at Donghae in what he hoped was a disbelieving and concerned manner.

Donghae hadn't expected much else, so he interrupted the look in the way Jay hoped he would. "Come on, let's go for a ride," he said passing by Jay en route to his bike. He didn't drag Jay along, but he did look back hopefully, as he walked away. Jay wanted to run, he didn't think he could handle being with Donghae in this situation while maintaining his cover. Yuri was so much better at this kind of thing! He'd forgotten that he'd have to play his part when he came back as he'd been planning the scheme out with Manager Ma. And with Donghae so attuned to his companion . . . Jay's cover was constantly on rocky ground.

Jay could handle the short rides between home and work that he spent alone with his hyung, but for every other moment he had to be around at least one other person who knew about the situation to have any kind of firm confidence in his masquerade.

But Yuri would have followed without hesitation, and so Jay followed with only a little. Donghae sighed silently in relief. He'd actually been worried for a second that Jay wouldn't come with him. Jay had been acting awfully weird lately.

Even when he had followed Donghae to the bike under the QuaszauR dorm, Jay was still acting weird. For the past two weeks or so, he hadn't so much as blinked at the motorcycle he'd been so terrified of for so long. In fact, as Donghae had been carting him around for band activities this past week, Jay had actually seemed at ease on the back. He hadn't once asked for his spot in the front; even if he had though, Donghae wasn't sure he'd be able to reach around the newly buff singer.

When Jay had built up all that muscle was something Donghae didn't know.

Jay slid onto the back with ease; he hadn't known his sister would ever ride one of these. She must have liked Donghae even more than he'd thought while he'd been in Japan. For his part, Jay loved the motorcycle as Donghae whisked him though the city, taking curves in smoothe yet exhilarating arcs.

They stopped just inside the city limits, at the Baskin Robins Donghae had taken _his_ Jay to just over a week ago. The real Jay had never been there. It showed, just enough to throw Donghae off without making him certain that something wasn't right. It was enough to get him very confused.

Donghae wasn't suspicious of anything specific, however, until the next day.


	15. The Truth Will NOT Set You Free

Jay had already run off to meet Dara for lunch when Z.J. found Donghae in the practice rooms. The solo singer waited patiently as his dongsaeng finished up a run-though of a song he'd never heard. _I Must be Crazy_ was coming together nicely, but the perfect choreography was still eluding its creator.

"How many back-up dancers are you thinking it should have?" Z.J. asked, noting the main problem immediately with his experienced eye.

Donghae gulped down some water and huffed, "I'm not sure. It's a solo, so I think it should have as few as possible. At the same time, it seems like it needs a decent number, doesn't it?"

"I'm thinking a partner and then at least two pairs of back-up's," Z.J. agreed.

Donghae took a quick breather before asking, "Why are you here?"

"A question for you, actually," Z.J. said, flipping around the laptop at his side. He was so comfortable with its weight that he was able to type using only one hand as it balanced on the other. "I've been hearing a lot about Jay lately, the netizens are noting some weird things about his behavior."

Donghae half winced. He felt a twinge of guilt that Jay had regressed to the point that even people outside the band were commenting on it. Z.J. didn't pay it mind. "You haven't been the most predictable person yourself," he said. "What was going though your head when you were talking with MinYeon yesterday? The general story is all over the internet . . . but that's not what I wanted to ask you about. Take a look at this; do you know who this is? Jay and Dara have been having lunch with this person for a while now. I'm curious, and of everyone we know, _you're_ the most likely to know."

He swiveled the computer around to show Donghae a slightly blurred photograph. It had obviously been taken by a very sneaky fan from across the café. The three apparently close friends were sitting evenly spaced around a high café table. Dara's back was to the camera, her hand laid across the table to join with Jay's. Or one of the Jays'.

Staring at the photograph of the person he'd spent the morning with and the other person so familiar in a hat and hoodie with that half smile that showed he was paying especially close attention, Donghae's mind slammed into a wall. His mental images of the pre and post debut Jay fought to rationalize the image on Z.J.'s screen. "When did they start having lunch with this person?" Donghae asked, almost breathless with shock.

Z.J. thought a moment. "Well the first picture was posted a few days ago, and this one was up yesterday, but I think the first report was about a week and a half ago. Maybe even a little further back."

That was around when Jay had started acting strangely again.

When Jay had suddenly become fearless and quiet and isolated and strange.

When Marmy had begun avoiding his savior like a bath.

When Jay and not-Jay had traded places . . . and Dara knew about it.

And SeungMi and Jaebi knew about it.

They had to have. They were the only people who spent more time with Jay than Donghae had. Donghae cursed himself for not noticing sooner.

And then he cursed himself for screwing up in the very beginning. The post debut Jay was the imposter, his strangeness made sense now that in had been placed in this context. At the same time he couldn't help but wonder what the imposter had thought about everything Donghae had done for him. With everything between them . . . and he'd just walked away.

The real Jay was the one that was dating Dara; that much was obvious from the way they'd gotten so much closer in the past few weeks and the way they were sitting in the picture. That meant Donghae's Jay was a free man, probably.

Donghae wasn't sure how he felt about that. He wanted to be happy, he actually had a chance and wouldn't have to break up a happy couple to take it. At the same time though, he felt horribly betrayed. How much of what the other Jay had told him had been true? How much had just been used to integrate himself within the group he wasn't a part of? And had he even cared that Donghae had gotten so attached to him? He'd just vanished in the night, without a word, without a note, without a goodbye . . .

Had not-Jay cared about him at all?

It was a lot to process and the indecision showed on Donghae's face as he stared intently at the picture, struggling to decide on his next move. Z.J. fidgeted a bit, nervous. For the first time in his career as a gossip, he felt that just maybe he'd crossed a line somewhere. He wasn't sure where though, because all he'd done was ask about a picture.

Donghae didn't say anything for a solid three minutes. It felt like a blink to him and an eternity to Z.J. "I have no idea who that is," he stated darkly. "Sorry. I have to go get ready for Inkigayo."

"Yeah, sure," Z.J. replied, his voice high with anxiety. "I'll catch you later then," he added, shutting the laptop without so much as closing his windows and practically jogging from the room.

Donghae morosely wove his way back to the dorm. He found YeongSaeng there and quietly explained things to him. At first YeongSaeng didn't believe him, it was an outlandish claim. But seeing how messed up his best friend was, the tide of his thoughts turned to let the pieces fall into place. It did make sense, in the weird nonsensical way that was such a consistent part of Jay's antics.

Claiming a headache, which was not by any means a stretch, Donghae got out of taking Jay to the studio on his motorcycle. In the vans, Jay handed him a thermos of tea. It didn't taste quite the same as the other headache-teas, the ones the other Jay had prepared. It still held the potent tinge of whatever magical substance got rid of aches and pains, but it was certainly different than the other Jay's concoctions.

All through the music show, Donghae kept his distance from Jay. No one but a few, hyper-attentive JaeHae fans noticed that _particular_ incongruity. QuaszauR noticed that Donghae wasn't half as flirty and expressive as he usually was, but they couldn't pinpoint the cause. The rest of the fans were too confused, at least the ones that spotted that Donghae was somehow a bit off, to do any more than wonder.

He didn't confront Jay until after dinner.

He took him out for ice cream again, to a shop that was within walking distance, where he bluntly said, "Why didn't your replacement keep the necklace I bought for him?"

Jay almost choked, he actually had to cough a few times to clear his airways enough to splutter, "What?"

"The person who debuted instead of you," Donghae repeated coldly. "Why didn't he keep the necklace I bought him?"

It was one of the main things that had been bothering Donghae about the not-Jay's disappearance. The necklace that not-Jay had worn everyday out of what Donghae had thought was affection for him, or at least for the piece, had been left behind when not-Jay had vanished. Had it really never meant anything to him? Donghae's key necklace, the one that paired with not-Jay's perfectly, was still around its owner's neck. It had never left. Not for an instant.

Jay just sort of shut down. Not because he was trying to hide the answer, but because he simply didn't know _how_ to answer. Was he supposed to confess everything now? Was he supposed to respect Yuri's wishes and try to get his cover back? Would either option turn out well? Jay had none of the answers to those questions, and therefore was left unable to answer Donghae's seemingly simple one.

Donghae fumed, reacting in a similar manner to Jay. He got really really _really_ quiet, which only pressured Jay told hold his silence all the more securely.

Eventually, Donghae gave up. He stood and walked back to the dorm in stony silence.

Jay was instantly on the phone with Dara. "We have a serious problem."

The pair decided to maintain their previous strategy, simply waiting to see what happened. Telling Yuri was out of the question. And it looked like the last thing Donghae wanted was to be patronized by an apology.

The atmosphere within the band was horrible for the afternoon. It lasted until the next day, when things became even worse for the members.

KyuJeon overheard Jaebi and SeungMi talking about the problem when he went to fetch them from the pet-store. They'd gone out to get Marmy more food and they'd lingered a bit too long for YoungJae's tastes. They had a practice to get started with.

KyuJeon was the first one to discover that not-Jay was Yuri without having the whole story explained to him. Of course, KyuJeon told YeongSaeng the moment he got to the practice room. Wisely, he spoke in a hushed voice so that the zoned-out Donghae wouldn't hear. YeongSaeng was shocked.

"We can't tell him, not yet," he said definitively.

"Why not?" KyuJeon hadn't because it just didn't sit right with him to do so, but YeongSaeng had a solid reason behind his decision.

"Even if it makes sense of why we didn't notice the switch, it would be just another thing that she lied about to him," YeongSaeng explained. "I don't think he'd be able to take that. He trusted his 'Jay' so much . . . he must be questioning everything. If we prove that something 'he' said was a lie, then Donghae will almost certainly assume that everything else was as well."

Even more quietly, KyuJeon wondered, "What if it was? . . . What if that person doesn't love Donghae at all?"

To this YeongSaeng responded simply, "If you'd had to say whether or not Jay was in love with Donghae three weeks ago, what would you have said?"

"Definitely."

"Then not _everything_ could have been a lie. You've seen them, you know it's true. There's no way to fake that kind of affection. And with that said, it's horrendously difficult to lie to the person you love," YeongSaeng replied. He spoke with the surety of experience at his back. He'd only managed to lie once or twice to KyuJeon, both times about the nature of his regard for his dongsaeng and only for KyuJeon's benefit. "It couldn't have _all_ been a lie."

KyuJeon still couldn't settle with the explanation. "But if it wasn't a lie, how could that person just walk away? And the necklace, Jay's still wearing it! Well, this Jay . . . but it was like the other Jay's most prized possession! Why would Yuri leave it behind?"

The name felt strange on his tongue.

"I don't know."

KyuJeon sighed heavily, giving up. He curled up on the floor of the practice room and tucked his head under his arms. "Why did Jay even go away to begin with?" he whimpered petulantly.

"I don't know," YeongSaeng repeated.

Donghae's performance at practice was horrible, quite possibly the worst he'd ever done. He was furious with Jay, and with Dara, and with the others who knew, SeungMi and Jaebi for sure. But mostly he was angry with the person who had replaced Jay.

He had no idea who the person he'd thought he'd fallen in love with was, or where he was for that matter. And he didn't know how to find out; he didn't even know if he _wanted _to find out.

That was the worst part for Donghae.

He'd been lied to and left and treated like a pawn. He shouldn't have wanted to ever see not-Jay again. But the questions of where he was, how he was doing, and what had happened to cause the trades, were running through his mind like they were part of a relentless track on a treadmill at full speed. It was awful to feel concern for the person who had betrayed him like that.

Donghae had never been so frustrated with anything in his entire life.

He was frustrated with Jay, with not-Jay, with his own inability to take a stand, and most of all with his inability to perform regardless of the circumstances of his mind's disarray. He was disappointed in himself.

And he was pissed at Jay.

All through practice, while he wasn't wallowing in the horrors of his situation, Donghae was seething as he watched Jay rehearse. Donghae kept kicking himself internally for not noticing sooner. The way Jay and not-Jay moved, down to the very way they walked, ate, _breathed_ was different.

By the end of practice, Donghae was practically beside himself.

He was hardly aware of his actions as he pulled Jay to one side as the rest of the band headed back to the dorms at the end of the day. He didn't notice as YeongSaeng shot him a wary and concerned look. He did notice that Dara hovered just around the corner of the building rather than crossing the quad to get home, he just didn't care.

"Why did you trade places with someone?" Donghae demanded.

Jay didn't know how to answer and remained silent longer than Donghae permitted him to. Donghae continued on to another question, his voice rising, "Who? Who was it that was willing to lie to everyone?" When Jay still didn't answer, Donghae's anger boiled over into a full-out shouting demand for the location of not-Jay.

When Jay still held his tongue, for simply not having any idea of how he should respond, Donghae grabbed him by the shirt and gave him a shake. Jay _still_ didn't say anything. Yuri was so much better at figuring out what was best to say in an unexpected situation like this. Jay's brain always shut down completely when he felt even a shiver of potential panic.

"Why won't you answer me?" Donghae railed, shoving Jay some more. "Huh? Why won't you say anything? Are you really such a bastard? Where's the imposter now? Maybe I'll get answers out of him, hmm?"

Dara tried to intervene as Donghae began to shove Jay harder and harder. "Donghae-oppa, don't—"

Donghae swiveled to turn his anger on her. "You don't have anything to say here! Unless _you_ feel like answering my questions: _you_ knew all about this little scam didn't you? So why don't _you_ tell me who the stunning little actor was? Hmm?"

Having never once faced a genuinely angry Donghae before, Dara suddenly felt very small. "I . . ." her voice came out as a whimper that just made Donghae all the more furious with her.

"You? That's it isn't it? That's all you can think about," Donghae shouted towering over her. "What was it that prompted you to bring the rising star up for such a role? Why did you do it? Why didn't you _say_ anything?"

"Hyungnim," Jay spoke up, just loudly enough to be heard. Still, he was practically shouting over Donghae's voice, "It's not her fault, she—"

"Not her fault? No, I suppose it isn't her _fault_, but she isn't guiltless, no matter what you were going to say," Donghae reported bitingly. "But no, it's not her fault; it's _yours_."

Donghae went to make a grab from Jay's already stretched out shirt collar, but ended up turning the motion into a wild throw of his fist. The pseudo-punch landed squarely on Jay's cheekbone with enough force to make him see stars and for Donghae's entire arm to erupt in a shiver of pain. He could only reflect on the high resistance Jay's face had provided for a moment.

After that he collapsed.

He woke up the next day in a hospital, an IV dripping into his arm. He imagined that he could see the little droplets moving though his arm, like fuzzy points of light on an x-ray scan. No one was in the room with him, and for that he was grateful.

Donghae only partially remembered the conflict from the day before; and he did _not_ remember hitting Jay, so the large purple splotch marring the side of the young singer's face as he came in with the others surprised him. In fact it gave him a mini-heart-attack, a sensation that passed quickly upon the realization that this was not _his_ Jay.

This Jay stayed in the back of the crowd, despite band efforts to get him a closer position to Donghae. The main band knew about their previous close attachment, while only six knew of the permanent nature to the obvious dissolution of that bond. Because of this, after the general well wishes and concerns had been given, Donghae was left with YeongSaeng as his only ally as Dara and Jay were locked in until the relationship was repaired.

The fans had even noticed the fight.

There were pictures of it on the internet, though no one knew exactly what the two had been fighting over. It had apparently been very serious though, and the band members that were not aware of the existence of Jay's imposter wanted the two to work things out. The silence in the room was the heaviest, blackest thing YeongSaeng had ever borne. The peace-making attempt was a horrendous failure.

Before they escaped however, Dara whispered a question to YeongSaeng. "Why haven't you told the others?"

"Donghae doesn't want to," YeongSaeng replied coolly.

"Why?" Dara asked, shocked.

Quietly, YeongSaeng said, "I don't know."

Outside of their range of notice, Yuri was sick herself with worry. She still was not aware of Donghae's knowledge that Jay had an imposter somewhere, due to a decision on Jay's part to try and keep her from freaking out utterly. As far as she knew the bruise on her brother's cheek came from his own clumsiness. For once Jay was glad Yuri currently didn't expend too much effort when it came to acquiring internet access. She wouldn't come across the story on her own, he was sure.

She did however need to know that Donghae had collapsed. This was chalked up to stress in regards to his efforts to get _I Must be Crazy_ finished before the tour's opening concert, to be held in only two weeks.

That Donghae had collapsed from stress was a reasonable explanation, Yuri had known that Donghae tended to overwork himself. And collapses were uncomfortably common in the idol world. She wanted more than anything to go see how he was, but she couldn't even get close. As a 'mere fan', the security at the hospital kept her from even entering the building. The only visitors allowed in were blood relatives of patients, with identification, and known celebrity friends of QuaszauR. In short, not Yuri.

She was there to watch her brother and the band go inside, though, after their morning practice and before they went to their music show filming. She spotted that something was wrong with their dynamic instantly. YeongSaeng and KyuJeon were leading the way, but Jay and Dara were in the very back, despite the rest of the band's efforts to get them closer together.

If even Yuri noticed it, the hawk-eyed and overly dramatic fans could see it from a mile away. A trio, decked out in the most outlandish display of crazy QuaszauR fan-girlism Yuri had ever seen, was tearfully worrying over the implications while simultaneously tuttering over the display. "That Jay," one was saying, "We love him, truly, because our oppas and unnies love him, but . . . poor Donghae oppa! What he's been forced to deal with! Oh, it's unbearable!"

With the fan's perspective being new to Yuri, she moved closer and asked what they meant. The three girls gave her a look, one that combined pity for her ignorance, and scorn for her weak display of fan-dom support. She wasn't even wearing a QuaszauR t-shirt after all, and to them this was a nearly criminal offense.

"Donghae brought Jay under his wing, back when the newbie first debuted," one of the girls started off, thinking that Yuri couldn't possibly know even the basics of the story. "It created a lot of tension, like everywhere, but especially with his girlfriend."

One of the other girls, the one with perfect ringlet curls, took over. "It was the worst when Donghae started helping Jay with _his_ girl issues. By helping him with Dara, Donghae made MinYeon feel unappreciated."

"They broke up last week," the first girl, who seemed to be their leader, mentioned as she sucked on a lollipop. "It was a huge fight, just outside JYG headquarters. Terrible, just plain terrible, my poor sweet Donghae oppa!"

Yuri was shocked. "They broke up? But that doesn't make sense!"

"I know, right? Min-Hae was so strong! They couldn't have just broken up because of one little singer!" The girl with the short hair seconded.

The leader girl sniffed. "That Jay was bad news right from the get-go; so what if it _seemed_ like Donghae-oppa was enjoying it, looking after that American punk wore him out! Anyone could have seen that!"

"It was really Jay's fault?" Yuri asked, thinking over everything Donghae had done for her. She certainly had taken up an awful lot of his time, and he'd been overworked before she'd come into the picture. What if it really had been her fault?

The girl with the curls answered, puzzled that Yuri would think anything else, "Of course it's Jay's fault; why else would they be fighting?"

"Fighting?"

The leader practically snorted. "Didn't you see the bruise on Jay's face? Donghae gave it to him, right before he collapsed from the stress."

"_What?_" That was _not_ how Yuri had heard the story.

"She's right," the girl with the curls said solemnly. "We were there. We couldn't hear what they were fighting about: they were still inside the doors of JYG headquarters. It was obvious though, after what happened with MinYeon. We could see everything, and Donghae was _not_ pleased with Jay. If Donghae hadn't collapsed, Jay would definitely be in much worse shape."

Yuri's mind was reeling, she couldn't understand. Why hadn't Jay told her what had really happened? And what had caused the split between her brother and Donghae? Dara had been saying until very recently that everything was perfectly fine; Yuri had assumed she'd stopped saying it because she'd gotten tired of repeating herself. But what if things had taken a turn for the worst?

What if something had gone wrong?

The only thing that Jay wouldn't tell Yuri about, if something _had_ gone awry, was the plan's total collapse.

Donghae knew.

The trio of girls was still chattering away about Jay's bad influence on the band as Yuri worked to process the information she had gained.

They stopped briefly when she abruptly stood up. Her phone had the number of the cell phone Donghae had bought her on speed dial. It was useless though, as Jay had turned his phone off for sake of their music show performance. Yuri left her brother a curt message and took a deep breath to settle herself. Then she turned towards the hospital door.

The leader of the trio blinked a few times, processing the strange actions of the fan, who seemed anything but a QuaszauR fanatic and yet also seemed to understand the band's situation awfully well. Her eyes unfocused for a moment as she stared, perplexed.

And then it hit her.

The fan's epiphany struck just as Yuri stepped forward to make her way into the building. The guard stopped her, declaring that visitations by fans were prohibited. "My name is Kim Yuri, and Kim Jaebeom is my brother. Hwan Donghae is my best friend in the entire world, and if you don't let me though, so help me _god_, I will make you regret it," she declared boldly, not actually thinking about what she was saying or doing. Yuri was focused solely on getting into that hospital, _immediately_.

Having just recently seen Kim Jaebeom of QuaszauR off; the guard caught on quickly to the resemblance in features between the popstar and the young girl standing before him. And as she looked like she would tear him to pieces if he even thought to refuse her, with all the fury of the truly concerned and none of the giddiness a fan would possess, the guard let her pass.

Yuri got as far as standing outside the door to Donghae's hospital room, before she paused to think about what she was doing.

Donghae knew . . . something.

What that something was, Yuri didn't know exactly.

She should probably go in and apologize, that would be the right thing to do. She could try to explain the full story to him, to maybe have a chance at his understanding if not his forgiveness. She couldn't even begin to think about what she would say though.

'Hi, I'm the one who lied to you for two months, oh by the way, it was totally important and justified.'? That would go over fabulously.

Yuri ended up simply standing outside, her forehead pressed again the glass as her fingers tapped silent messages on the window in the door. From her post, Yuri could just see Donghae. It was at an odd angle, but it was him; dressed in the street clothes he'd changed into the moment the doctors and nurses weren't hovering directly over him. The sight of his drawn features only made her indecision all the more acute.

He was already so stressed, what with his song still not finished and the tour coming up . . . Yuri was sure she didn't want to add to his load. But she was unsure as to what would be the better option, making him face everything now to get it over with, or letting him push it all aside for the time being so he could deal with it later.

Donghae's mind was in even greater turmoil.

The worst day Donghae had ever survived had been the day he'd thought himself responsible for Jay's regression. His current state of wallowing in the misery of questioning the fabric of the relationship that had become most important to him was a close second.

He kept thinking over every tiny detail, every gesture, every word, and every look he and not-Jay had ever exchanged. It was horrible, reliving everything that had made him smile while seeing it all as a lie. Donghae's vivid imaginings were not limited to the past. He could have sworn that he had seen _his_ Jay outside his hospital room at least twice.

Towards the end of the day, he did see one Jay, but it wasn't his version. The real Jay showed up for some reason. He didn't come inside, he only looked through the window in the door for a long moment before vanishing. Donghae wouldn't have wanted it any other way. If Jay had come inside, Donghae would have chased him out again.

Jay, the real one, wouldn't have set foot in the hospital if it had been his choice. He'd only come out of concern for Yuri.

His baby sister was a wreck.

A furious wreck.

She went on an impressive rant that involved less breathing time than Jay thought was physically possible. She rightfully blamed Jay for the entire fiasco; even with Z.J. having been the one that actually gave Donghae the right clues, Jay was at fault for getting the plan started at all.

The siblings stood in the hospital elevator, riding up and down and somehow avoiding any additional passengers, for nearly half an hour as Yuri declared her frustrations and cried herself out into Jay's shoulder. For once, she didn't have any ideas about what to do. The situation was as bad as it could get, as Jay had explained, and Yuri didn't have the strength to bear Donghae's apparent hatred.

She made the decision to run away.

This week was the series of goodbye stages that QuaszauR was performing for _HeartQuake_. They weren't going to have a follow-up song this time around.

Just after their last Inkigayo stage would be the first full-sized concert the real Kim Jaebeom would sing at. Yuri would stay to watch his debut and then fly out to the United States the next day.

The plan was decided as the Kim siblings headed out of the elevator. As Jay walked Yuri back to where she was staying, he got her to talk about the good times she'd had while impersonating her brother. She spoke sadly, but nothing, not even Donghae's hatred, was able to keep her from remembering the happiness she had experienced.

Her words and their deeper meanings were not lost on Jay.

They were also caught by a person neither sibling thought capable of either understanding or of being surreptitious enough to go unnoticed in her eavesdropping.

Kwon MinYeon was fascinated as she listened to the mysterious girl chat with Jaebeom. She'd ducked out of the pair's sightline because she didn't want anything to do with the person she'd been dumped for; hearing the right phrase to pique her interest had been a gift of pure chance. And by lucky accident she won the lottery.

Everything about Donghae's erratic behavior suddenly made much more sense. MinYeon followed along behind to continue listening to what the girl was saying as the pair waltzed out of the hospital, oblivious to her presence.

One of the guards waved to them as they headed away from the building and MinYeon targeted him. With her best innocent and flirty face on, she asked him, "Who was that girl with our little Jaebeom?"

The guard was flustered, as men were known to get around the gorgeous idol superstar. He was unable to answer before one of the fans supplied the information MinYeon was looking for without the necessity of her charm being employed. The girl was sucking on a lollipop, half in awe and half in aggravation, as she explained, "That was Kim YuRi, Jay's baby sister."

MinYeon couldn't hold back a smile as the final ironic piece clicked into place. To explain it away to the fans staring at her curiously, she said, "I thought she looked familiar, such a shame I wasn't able to catch her properly. We're such great friends, despite her brother." With that, MinYeon spun around on her spectacularly high and narrow heels and marched into the hospital, sure that when she walked out, her boyfriend would be over this Jay obsession of his.

Putting on her best cute air, MinYeon greeted Donghae affectionately. He was pretending to be asleep though, and did not react. MinYeon pretended to believe his act and petted his forehead in concern as she cooed aloud to her herself, with her perfected I'm-a-victim-too voice, "I can't believe he would do that to anyone, but especially innocent you. That scoundrel, replacing himself with someone more capable of manipulating you, just to make sure he was in your good graces! _That_ person's a scoundrel too! So easily, they just walked into our lives, fooling us all, and then walked out without a word!"

This got the reaction she'd been aiming for: Donghae sat up, immediately intent on her with all of his focus. "What do you know?"

"I know the person you fell in love with was just using you," MinYeon said, pretending to be startled with his sudden alertness, even as she was genuinely surprised with the intensity of his stare.

"Explain."

MinYeon ignored his curt words, thinking that soon he would forget all about the person who had so 'abused' them. "It was certainly a brilliant little scheme. Jay replaced himself with someone more . . . attractive to you, so that he could gain your support so that the fans would love him as much as they love you. When he was sure that he had your affection, Jay came back."

"Who was it? Who replaced him?"

"Kim YuRi," MinYeon said, enunciating each despicable syllable. "Feminine wiles get you every time, that's why I worry about your well-being so much. Now that you know how we've both been deceived, I hope that we – Hey!"

Donghae had jumped up after only a moment's consideration upon hearing that _his_ Jay was actually Jay's sister. He wasn't quite willing to believe that he could have been so easily, and so completely, fooled. He'd thought he'd known Jay, and now even the _gender_ of the person he'd thought himself in love with was in question? He needed to see proof, and he knew where he could find some.

He ignored MinYeon's protests as he pulled out his cell-phone and began heading downstairs. He wasn't concerned by her thoughts, or by his health; he needed to get to JYG headquarters. YeongSaeng answered his phone immediately and promised to be at the hospital in ten minutes, so long as Donghae didn't do anything stupid like parade out in front of the fans.

His warning was well-warranted, and Donghae jerked to a halt just before he reached the doors of the hospital. No matter how riled up he was, the fans shouldn't be worried over it. Besides, the _scandal_ this would create, if it came to light, would ruin Jay forever; and Donghae, even with his raw fury raging, was not out to destroy Jay's career.

MinYeon had followed him downstairs and chattered mindlessly in his ear about how she was just _so_ worried about him and how this couldn't be healthy for him and his fixation on Jay and Yuri was only going to hurt him and how they should just go out for a nice dinner and go back to how things had been before Jay had ever walked onto a stage. Donghae didn't listen to any of it.

YeongSaeng pulled up to a side entrance for the hospital. It was a narrow hall that provided poor views and thus had not attracted any fans. YeongSaeng and Donghae were able to slip through it completely unnoticed, leaving MinYeon to deal with the nurses' questions about their missing patient.

The ride was silent as Donghae thought through everything he'd been thinking of all day, yet again, with this new filter and YeongSaeng tried to figure out what it was that had so perturbed him. Donghae couldn't believe that all this time that he'd never noticed something that important.

When YeongSaeng pulled up in front of JYG headquarters, Donghae jumped out before the car had even fully stopped. YeongSaeng rushed to follow him inside as he went straight for the QuaszauR practice rooms. Each member had a little cubby thing that they stowed some of their stuff in. It was mainly for the girls to store their practice high heels in, as they worked their way up while they practiced new choreography from flats to stilettos. They were also there in case they had a particularly strenuous practice lined up and needed a change of clothes and didn't have time to head back to the dorm. It didn't happen very often, as the dorms were _right_ nearby, and for the most part the cubbies lay forgotten by the band, used only as seats while solo or sub-group songs were being worked on.

Donghae knew that Jaebeom had put a bag of his stuff in there the first day he'd joined QuaszauR for practice, and in that bag was a particular picture of him with his sister on her first day of high school. She looked young and had long hair, but her face was unmistakable. It was Donghae's Jay, beyond a doubt.

"All this time, it was Yuri," Donghae mumbled.

YeongSaeng began to feel distinctly uncomfortable. "Really?"

"It just seemed . . . like I knew him better than that, you know?" Donghae said, still staring at the picture. He thought of their appearance on the Parody Concert, and of how Jay had looked so pretty. At the time he'd thought it mere ulzzang, the Korean idol world was full of grade-A pretty boys. But now Jay's pretty face made much more sense.

"Yeah, I thought we knew him too," YeongSaeng said, adding, "How did you figure out that Yuri was the one?"

Donghae laughed without humor at the irony, saying, "MinYeon, believe it or not. I don't know how she found out, but she wanted to get us back together and was using it as a sort of 'I forgive you for straying because you were deceived' kind of thing."

"I would never have guessed," YeongSaeng in ambiguous reference to what could have been either the discovery of not-Jay's identity or that it was MinYeon who had uncovered it. After a moment of stiff silence, YeongSaeng added, "What are you thinking?"

"What do you mean?"

"Are you going to get back with MinYeon?"

Donghae didn't have to think about it. "No."

"Is it because of Yuri?"

"No," Donghae replied after a pause. He was _not_ still in love with that person. The person he'd fallen in love with had never existed.

YeongSaeng waited a moment, letting Donghae mull over his answer. Then he asked, "What _do_ you think of Yuri?"

"Honestly? I think she's as much of a bitch as MinYeon, maybe more," Donghae said bluntly and more ungraciously than YeongSaeng had ever heard him.

Strangely though, his friend's emotional reaction actually gave YeongSaeng some hope. Donghae was still as obsessed as ever with his not-Jay, whether he knew it or not. YeongSaeng was horribly angry with both Jay and Yuri for pulling this stunt, but he was more concerned about how much Donghae truly cared for Yuri. And he wasn't so sure that Yuri had been as able to walk away as Donghae thought she was, after all, it had been clear she'd fallen for him as well.

"Are you going to try and find her?" YeongSaeng wondered.

Sharply, Donghae responded with his own question, "Why would I? She abandoned us, don't forget, and lied to us all this whole time. What reason could I possibly have to want to find her?"

"To ask her why she did it?" YeongSaeng suggested quietly. "To ask her why she didn't say anything? Or why she left?"

"I don't care," Donghae snapped.

YeongSaeng stayed silent, though he wanted to ask if that was true. He knew it wasn't but asking the question would only provoke a fight. His thoughts were on his face though, and Donghae's expression darkened when he noticed.

"What? You think I should find her? Why?" Then a horrible thought hit Donghae. Normally, he wouldn't give it any genuine consideration, but with the only other person he was as close to being a complete fabrication, perhaps his best friend also had some secrets. "You knew."

YeongSaeng paled, he couldn't help it. It was enough for Donghae.

"My god . . . even you? Why?"

YeongSaeng struggled to reply. "I didn't know until recently. I didn't know how to tell you and I thought—"

"You thought since you didn't know how to say it, you could just not?" Donghae demanded angrily, kicking Jay's bag back into its cubby hole as he lashed out against his best friend. The picture of Jay and Yuri was crushed in his hand.

"No, I just . . ."

"What?"

YeongSaeng couldn't meet Donghae's gaze as he said, "I guess I thought it'd be better for you both if somehow _she_ explained things."

Incredulous, Donghae crossed his arms. "You thought that I'd be willing to even _think_ about picking up where we left off? Really? I don't believe it."

"Where are you going?" YeongSaeng asked as Donghae gave him a look and then stormed out of the practice room.

"I need some air," he shouted back, slamming the door.

Stomping and huffing indignantly, disbelievingly, and furiously the whole way, Donghae made his way over to the parking garage. He got on his bike, hurling Jay's helmet across the garage with all his might before he put his own on. Then he streaked out of the parking garage faster than he had ever gone before.

He went straight out to the countryside, disregarding any form of speed limit entirely. Donghae zoomed across Korea, going faster and farther and more recklessly than he ever had before. He'd never needed to push his bike to the fastest it could go, but now he was frustrated when he discovered that it did indeed have a top speed.

The abrupt exit from the hospital had been in the middle of the afternoon and the lack of darkness was hardly satisfying in Donghae's desperate ride. Especially when coupled with his inability to reach a speed that thrilled him more than he was pissed off.

Seeking a nocturnal refuge, Donghae turned back towards the city. There was a particular club he knew of, it wasn't technically open yet, but for him they would make an exception. The club was owned by his old friend, an entrepreneur that had proven very successful both in his club business and the chain of hotels he had financed the start-up of with money from his club.

The club was his baby though, and Lee MinWoo was always there. He wasn't fully awake on weekend afternoons, but Donghae pounded on the door long enough to get him moving. "Donghae-ah," MinWoo complained when he opened the door. His hair was a mess, he was leaning on the door frame to remain in a vaguely standing position, his tie had been pulled loose, and the first few buttons on his shirt had been undone. "Why are you here? I just got back from a board meeting, with those American bastards that want to buy me out."

"MinWoo-Sunbae," Donghae sighed. "I'm sorry I woke you, but I think we could both use a drink."

"You little punk, come on in," MinWoo said, moving out of the way. Donghae followed him, closing the door behind them. Empty, the club seemed huge. Two stories, an upstairs bar to match the elaborate liquor showcase below, and a wide open space for dancing; the design was MinWoo's personal handiwork.

MinWoo gave a groggy stretch and moved behind the bar counter. "What can I get ya?" he asked. Without waiting for an answer, he began tossing a few bottles of alcohol and fruit juice around with an expert's touch. He knew what Donghae liked, strong and sweet; and he could whip him up any drink he wanted in his sleep.

When the glasses clanked down on the counter, MinWoo leaned over the bar asking, "How's HeeJin?"

"She's good," Donghae replied. "Her shop's doing really well, and she's mellowed out a lot recently. She hasn't thrown her mug at me in a few months."

"Is that supposed to be a hint?"

Donghae grinned. "You know it is."

"She's hated me since this club became a success," MinWoo replied, his voice wistful. "She says it's not a real job."

"But you have the hotels."

"I own half of the hotels, and if things go the way they did today, well yesterday, ever again, I won't even own that much," MinWoo replied.

"Ah, see, that's why you should act now!" Donghae said, "Before you can't say you own the hotels anymore. Running a hotel has to be a 'real job'."

"She thinks what you do is a real job," MinWoo toasted in agreement.

"Sunbae has never liked clubs, she's too shy for them," Donghae explained.

Sighing, MinWoo noted the topic evasion keenly. For now he let it slide. "My sweet HeeHee," he sighed, swirling the last of his drink around in its glass. The ice bounced the light around in exotic arrays.

"She doesn't talk about you at all," Donghae jabbed playfully at his friend as he downed the last of his first round.

"Hey, that hurt," MinWoo responded with a pout as he readied the next set.

Donghae grinned. "She has a framed picture of you over her cash register, though."

"Now you're just insulting me," MinWoo sniffed with false offence as he passed Donghae another drink.

"No no, _that_ one's true," Donghae replied. "And she doesn't talk much at all, unless she's yelling, let alone about you." Donghae finished with a bit of unwarranted gravity. MinWoo was intrigued and thought he had found his opening.

"What does she talk about, then? Besides her latest designs, that is," MinWoo questioned, watching Donghae carefully.

There was a definite reaction in the singer, but MinWoo wasn't certain what it meant. "She meddles, as always, gossips. But you know how it is, her designs are her life."

"What's her favorite gossip topic this week? Hmm? She always loved talking about you and YeongSaeng, and whatever it was that you two crazies were up to."

Darkly, Donghae replied, "She still does."

MinWoo nodded knowingly and poured another shot of vodka into Donghae's fruity little drink. He nodded his thanks; usually he liked a bit of sugary juice to mask the harshness of the liquor, but today the pain was more welcome than the sweetness that so reminded him of the sugar-addict he'd taken care of for a time.

"How is YeongSaeng?"

Donghae didn't answer. Instead he stared into his glass, swirled the liquid around a bit and took a long swig. He didn't want to think about YeongSaeng.

"Tell me about those Americans," he said instead. Other people's problems, those he could deal with, those he _thrived_ on dealing with.

"Idiots, the lot of them," MinWoo said, ceding for the moment. "They think they can just buy me out; they don't know the first thing about this business! Not here in Korea, at least. If they ever do manage to get this deal of theirs pushed through the whole chain will be in ruins before the week is out."

"That fast?"

"It's half way there already," MinWoo said with a crooked grin. "Hotels always are."

"Really?"

"That's why I can never afford to come to your concerts, if I stop micro-managing anything for even an hour, the whole scheme falls to pieces," MinWoo explained.

Donghae laughed, "And HeeJin thinks being company president is not a real job, you should prove her wrong."

"You're awfully pushy tonight. What's that about? Do I have a rival or something you're not planning on telling me of?"

"Nothing like that," Donghae replied. He wondered too why he was pushing that side of the conversation so hard. He knew why he was avoiding certain topics, but why he was trying to get MinWoo to try again with HeeJin was currently beyond him. It never occurred to him that Yuri had pressured her friends into getting together, which was definitely a good thing in terms of his mood.

"Then what?"

Donghae shrugged. "You're just good people, you know? You and HeeJin deserve a happy ending."

MinWoo was silent a long moment. He was wondering if this would be a good time to start asking the serious questions, or if Donghae wasn't quite intoxicated enough yet. Donghae may have been the one that got everyone to reveal their tensions before they were crushed, but he himself would drown in his worries before he even noticed how affected by them he was. HeeJin was the same, and MinWoo had long since learned that the best way to help her out was not one generally acceptable.

Alcohol was not the solution to anyone's problems, but for people like HeeJin and Donghae, it was the best way for an outsider to obtain the information they needed to help their friend effectively. MinWoo would never admit it, but crafting the prudent HeeJin a drink that she would actually enjoy and still get tipsy from had been the main reason he'd become a bartender in the first place.

Donghae was a much easier sell.

But he also had a higher tolerance.

"How's your work been going? Music shows and what not?"

"Same old, same old," Donghae replied sullenly. He was swirling the glass around in one hand as the other played with the edge of his jacket. MinWoo's keen eyes spotted the outline of a crumpled piece of paper.

Photography paper to judge by the sheen it had even in the bar's low lights.

It was a girl, MinWoo concluded quickly. That's the only reason a man as successful as Hwan Donghae would be wandering around looking for alcohol and a distraction in the middle of the afternoon with a crumpled picture in his pocket.

"Have you been able to see MinYeon at all during your busy schedule?"

MinWoo knew they had broken up, by now anyone with ears did. It was the biggest piece of news to hit Seoul in a month.

"We broke up."

The way Donghae said it confused MinWoo; there was no strife in his voice, no struggle to speak. In fact he almost sounded relieved.

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not."

"I can see that," MinWoo said leaning back from the bar.

This was very strange for Donghae. MinYeon had been the only girl in his life for years. HeeJin, the girls in his band, shopkeepers, make-up artists, and fans; they may as well have been fish for all the physical attraction Donghae felt for them. This must have been some girl.

MinWoo was too curious to wait for another round to finish up. Instead he leaned over the bar until his eyes were level with his old schoolmate. Staring intently, first at the vodka he was pouring into Donghae's glass and then moving nothing but his eyes to stare into his junior's, MinWoo asked quietly, "Donghae, why are you here?"

"Because you're probably the only person _I_ know that didn't know," Donghae replied cryptically. "Well, HeeJin-sunbae might not know, but _she_ doesn't approve of alcohol." He still wasn't quite intoxicated enough for direct questioning to work.

That wouldn't stop MinWoo from trying as his curiosity quickly overrode patience; and he wasn't half as worried about offending Donghae as he would have been with HeeJin. But first there was the matter of that photograph. As Donghae took another swig, MinWoo reached up and slipped the picture out of his pocket.

Donghae didn't even notice. He and YeongSaeng had learned their magic tricks from the master of sleight of hand after all, and the students had a long way left to go before they had a hope of surpassing their teacher. In the picture was a boy and a girl, they looked like siblings even at a glance. The girl wasn't very pretty, in MinWoo's eyes, but the picture was obviously an old one and perhaps she'd grown into good looks.

With the picture under the counter, Donghae was left unaware that he'd lost it. Actually, he was unaware that he'd even brought it. Sometime during his fit upon discovering YeongSaeng's disloyalty, it had made its way into Donghae's pocket on part of no conscious action he'd made.

After another few minutes of silence that stretched long past their welcome, though Donghae was at least tipsy enough not to notice, MinWoo asked, "Didn't know what?"

"About Jay."

There was the strife MinWoo had been fishing for when he'd asked about MinYeon. This time, MinWoo didn't think of the answer as cryptic. It was the best Donghae could do; the singer could hardly even pronounce the name, let alone explain himself.

MinWoo had to lean back again, surprised at the force of Donghae's reaction. He was hopelessly attached, in a more severe, deep rooted, and convoluted way than MinWoo had ever seen anyone entangled with another. This must have been _some_ girl.

And then there was the reason Donghae seemingly despised his best friend, YeongSaeng definitely wouldn't have fought him over the girl. It confused MinWoo for a moment, though he supposed it was _possible_, if unlikely. A little love triangle between the three boys . . . it was unlikely at best considering Donghae's history with MinYeon and the thing YeongSaeng had with another of Donghae's bandmates. Though, the boy in the picture certainly had a pretty face; a little spacey maybe, but Donghae would enjoy taking care of someone like that.

"YeongSaeng?"

"He knew. He _knew_ and didn't tell me," Donghae yelled, grasping the glass in his hand so hard that MinWoo wondered if the material would hold up to the pressure.

"Knew what? What about Jay didn't he tell you about?"

"Who he was," Donghae replied. "YeongSaeng knew who _my_ Jay was."

MinWoo felt like this conversation was leaving him behind very quickly.

"Donghae, who is this?" MinWoo asked, pulling out the picture and holding it in front of his face.

With a laugh that sounded more like an exclamation of pain, Donghae replied, "That's Jay, the real one, and my Jay, the one I _thought_ was my Jay."

"What do you mean?"

"That is Kim JaeBeom and Kim YuRi," Donghae said scornfully. "They switched places before Jay debuted with us. Apparently, they thought getting me on their side was important, and that _she_ could pull it off better than her brother."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

MinWoo whistled. "Really? She looks . . . too sweet for that."

"She's the perfect con-artist," Donghae mumbled miserably. "I didn't suspect a thing, not even for a second."

"What happened?"

Donghae didn't respond until MinWoo tipped a bit more vodka into his glass. "They switched back. And the real kicker is that I probably would have _never_ known had they not been caught by a fan having lunch together. Nobody told me anything. After everything, I wasn't worth even a goodbye."

"Is that the only explanation?"

"What other explanation could there be?"

MinWoo shrugged. "That she left unwillingly? That her brother bullied her into it?"

"She was stronger than that, Jay wouldn't have been able to bully her," Donghae replied, thinking that if anything _she_ had bullied _him_ growing up. "And even if he had, she could have told me. She told Dara," Donghae added spitefully.

MinWoo continued to press for information, but even Donghae could only hold up to such a rapid intake of vodka for so long, especially as it was basically undiluted. It wasn't after much longer that Donghae succumbed and fell completely asleep as he collapsed onto the bar table. He'd snatched the picture away from MinWoo right before he blacked out and currently it was being crushed in his fist.

Cleaning up slowly, MinWoo tried to process all the information Donghae had given him. The kid had some major problems. MinWoo didn't even know where to begin, if he had been the one in Donghae's place . . . What could he possibly do?

Donghae was still in love with the girl, that much MinWoo was certain of.

He was equally certain, however, that Donghae would probably never forgive her.

Reasonably so, MinWoo thought. If he discovered that HeeJin for some reason had lied to him about everything she was . . . MinWoo wouldn't be able to function for his conflicted feelings. He'd never be able to forget his feelings for her, but he'd never be able to accept them either.

Regarding HeeJin, MinWoo had a phone call to make.

HeeJin greeted him with a perky sales pitch, wrapping up with a cute, "How can I help you today?"

"Hee-noonim, don't hang up," MinWoo pleaded, knowing that to do so would be her instinctive reaction. "Donghae needs you."

He heard HeeJin sigh. Then she asked, "What's wrong?"

"He was betrayed by the one he loves," MinWoo cooed in his best storyteller voice.

This got HeeJin's complete attention. "What?"

"Apparently, this girl impersonated her brother as part of this whole scheme to get Donghae to support the new guy," MinWoo said vaguely. "I'm not quite sure about the exact details."

HeeJin was quiet for a moment. Breathlessly she replied, "How did he find out?"

"You knew?"

"Sort of, I . . . Where are you?"

MinWoo was shocked that HeeJin had known. It wasn't quite the revelation that Donghae had experienced in the form of YeongSaeng, but it was still eye-opening. "I'm at the club."

"Donghae's with you?"

"Sort of . . . he is _physically_ present."

HeeJin fumed silently for a moment. Then she fumed not-so-silently, "You got him _drunk_? That's your master plan of helpfulness when his whole world crashes down? I can't believe you! Do you have any idea how much Yuri means to him? This misunderstanding has quite possibly driven him insane!"

"Misunderstanding?"

"I'll explain it when I get there," HeeJin retorted. "Put Donghae somewhere he can sleep comfortably."

* * *

**A/N: **I'm sorry this is such a downer chapter, but hey, kdrama's wouldn't be half as exciting if they were happy all the time. I can promise you a happy ending though, so do not fear! This little depressing phase won't last forever!


	16. Heartache & Headaches

HeeJin arrived at MinWoo's door just as he finished trying to get Donghae into a comfortable position in a nearby booth. She'd apparently broken nearly every speed limit on her journey, for though the distance was not a long one between the two business establishments, the ride should have been at least twenty minutes.

MinWoo let her inside and she quickly spotted Donghae's form resting on the cushioned seat of the booth. She eyed it and said disdainfully, "That's your idea of comfortable?"

"What did you want me to do? Carry him upstairs and put him in my bed?" MinWoo commented, "He's not the only one who's had a hard day."

HeeJin sighed, her expression filling with a deep pity. "He let her ride his motorcycle," she said quietly.

For a moment, MinWoo had thought he'd heard wrong. Donghae didn't let _anyone_ on his motorcycle, ever. Since he'd first gotten one, the top of the line machine had been his personal work of art. Others could look, but even that was discouraged.

"He let her wear his hats," HeeJin continued. "Bought her breakfast, and coffee. Stayed up late, waiting for her. He broke up with MinYeon even, just so that he could be there _for her_."

"Seriously?" MinWoo asked, he'd been underestimating the gravity of the situation by practically criminal levels. Angry on behalf of his schoolmate, MinWoo voiced, "And she just abandoned him? Used him like that?"

"She _just_ nothing," HeeJin retorted.

"And you knew? I thought you were Donghae's number one caretaker in Seoul! His mother sends you more fruit than a _village_ could eat every holiday," MinWoo said. He was still rocked with the revelation that sweet HeeJin would have kept something this important from Donghae.

HeeJin responded softly, "I only found out after they switched back. Yuri's staying in my loft."

"What the hell? You're letting _that_ stay with you?"

Now HeeJin was angry. "You don't know even half the story! So just shut up and listen. Though maybe _you're_ too pathetic to _ever_ understand."

MinWoo held his tongue, letting HeeJin get into her story instead of picking a fight with her. This was about Donghae after all, and right now his situation warranted more attention than MinWoo's circumstances with HeeJin.

HeeJin's story was the cliff's notes version of what Yuri had told her. She made sure to include all the pertinent details, particularly the high stakes and the feelings Yuri had developed, while leaving out the play by play development of how they had grown close.

During her telling, they'd moved to sit back at the bar, with MinWoo behind the counter in the space he felt most comfortable. He'd made HeeJin a cup of tea, taking some for himself as well. By the end of HeeJin's story, MinWoo had ruined any healthy aspect of the tea by pouring a profuse amount of alcohol in it. For once, HeeJin didn't complain; this was a lot to swallow.

"Donghae is never going to believe that's what happened."

HeeJin replied while wearing the sad smile of one completely hopeless, "I know."

"He thinks Jay had her impersonate him to get an in with the band and to short-cut a fan-base. Before they started this fight thing the fans are so riled up about, Donghae's fans _were_ basically the only ones Jay had," MinWoo said, extrapolating from what HeeJin had told him. "No matter what we say, he's not going to believe it."

"I know."

"So what do we do?"

"I have no idea."

MinWoo sighed. "We're such outsiders here."

"If we try to do anything, he'll say we're just interfering in business that isn't ours."

"And he'd be right. Sort of."

HeeJin was silent as she finished her tea. "Our only hope is YeongSaeng, and Donghae isn't speaking to him. Why else would he be here?" HeeJin added at MinWoo's raised eyebrow. He hadn't told his story, so HeeJin wasn't aware of why that was so, but it was obvious that something had happened between them by YeongSaeng's mere absence from Donghae's side.

"He knew."

"_What_? Since when? And how?"

"Donghae didn't really explain that part. I'm not sure if he even knows."

MinWoo suggested after a pause, "We could call him in; get him the whole story, and then hope he can somehow convince Donghae."

"I don't know, it seems good, but if YeongSaeng knows the whole story while Donghae doesn't . . . it just feels like that would push them even further apart," HeeJin responded with a glance in her charge's direction.

The two talked for a while longer without making any progress in their problems. When they finally decided to call it a night, MinWoo carried Donghae out to HeeJin's car. "It was good to see you again, even like this," MinWoo mentioned cautiously as he closed the door of the back seat.

"Yeah," HeeJin agreed, adding as she slipped into the driver's seat, "I'll keep you posted if anything happens."

"And I'll make sure to call you if he comes back."

At the dorm, QuaszauR was still involved with the last of their dinners. HeeJin sat in her car with Donghae in the back as she stared up at the windows she knew belonged to the band's home. Eventually the lights dimmed to the point that HeeJin could be fairly certain most of the occupants had gone to bed. That's when she called YeongSaeng.

He was at the car within a minute, and together they helped the mostly unconscious Donghae to his room.

"What happened?" YeongSaeng asked.

"MinWoo got the story out of him," HeeJin replied. "Between them they nearly finished off a bottle of Grey Goose."

YeongSaeng nodded with understanding. "Then, do you know about . . .?"

"Yes, I know about Yuri."

Looking his sunbae over carefully, YeongSaeng asked, "And what do you think of her? What she did?"

HeeJin answered carefully, making sure not to reveal that she knew more than Donghae could have told her. She didn't know how much YeongSaeng knew and she didn't want to make his split from Donghae any more severe than it already was. "I know that Donghae loves her, whether he's still willing to admit it or not. And from the few times I met with her . . . she seemed like she was as much in love as he."

"Then how did she walk away?"

"I have no idea, but I'm sure it wasn't a summer stroll," HeeJin responded, adding, "What do you think?"

"Jay definitely loved Donghae, of that I'm certain . . . but if that's true, Yuri should still be in Seoul. She wouldn't be able to leave," YeongSaeng said. "And Donghae . . . he still loves his Jay, but even I'm not sure if that person really exists or not; and even if Yuri is that person, Donghae will never trust her again, not that I can see."

HeeJin nodded. She wasn't forseeing a happy outcome to this either. "Take care of him for me, won't you?"

"Always."

YeongSaeng waved her off and then went back to pondering his situation. He couldn't get through to Donghae if Donghae wasn't speaking to him. But he couldn't think of a way to get Donghae to speak to him again.

The next day, Donghae stayed in the dorm. QuaszauR explained to the fans that though he had been released from the hospital, he was still not quite healthy enough to return to the stage. He would not be participating in the music shows.

The concert was the first time that Donghae would come back for his fans.

Fans responded with massive concern, mailing fruit baskets, get well soon cards, and teddy bears by the thousand. They wanted their idol to perform for them, but only if he was healthy enough to do so safely.

When the band came home for the day, Donghae's door was locked.

He refused to respond to anyone's inquiries; especially YeongSaeng's. He threw something heavy at the door when the supposed best friend asked for entrance.

YeongSaeng cornered Dara, he wasn't in the mood to talk to Jay directly, but he needed the information. Dara could give it to him.

"You have to tell me about Yuri."

"I do not," Dara retorted, confrontational from the start.

YeongSaeng didn't let her walk away when she tried. He grabbed her shoulder and yanked her back inside the relative privacy of the kitchen. "Yes, you do."

"Why should I? It's not like you'd believe me if I said she was some sort of saint or something," Dara snapped, yanking her arm free.

"No, I wouldn't," YeongSaeng said quietly. "I wouldn't. I just . . . I need to know. For Donghae. The whole thing, I just need to be able to explain it to him."

Dara sniffed. "He should be the one asking; if he doesn't want to hear the truth, why should I give it to him?"

"Because he's hurting, they both are," YeongSaeng said. "They're part of our family; Yuri too, as angry as I am at her. She's become an important part of our lives, and I want to know the truth; and Donghae needs it."

Sighing heavily, Dara eyed YeongSaeng carefully. She did hate to see how tortured Donghae currently was, but it was his fault in a way. He'd made his own conclusions and acted upon them. And he'd punched her boyfriend.

"When did you figure out that it was Yuri? When did _he_ figure it out?"

"I'm not sure how exactly, but he found out sometime yesterday from MinYeon," YeongSaeng replied. "And Kyu overheard JaeMi discussing it at the pet store, in that little couple world of theirs; he told me a few days ago."

"Why is he so much more upset now that he knows who Jay's replacement was?"

YeongSaeng replied simply, "Confirmation. He'd known that Jay had been replaced, but having a name for the imposter, a background, and a possible reason for the switch . . . it makes everything so much more real. He's questioning everything Yuri ever told him because the base facts of her existence were proven false."

Dara thought about how she would feel, were their positions reversed and Jay and Yuri had switched places leaving _her_ out of the loop; how knowing who had done it would change things, how it could make them worse.

She relented.

The story was a long one and Dara was sure that she didn't do its telling justice.

YeongSaeng stood quietly through it all, listening carefully and thoughtfully nodding his head on occasion. He could sympathize with Yuri's situation, and it was possible that he would be able to forgive her eventually. But that would only happen if Donghae's downward spiral could be stopped.

Yuri had become YeongSaeng's friend, but Donghae was his brother.

The singer spent the rest of the night mulling over what Dara had told him. KyuJeon sat by him on the couch for a while, wisely remaining silent and letting YeongSaeng play mindlessly with his hair. By the time he turned in for the night, YeongSaeng was fairly sure he could forgive Yuri, and even Jay after some time.

But he still had the problem of Donghae.

The next day marked QuaszauR's goodbye stage on Inkigayo, the last of the finale shows. The next time their fans would see them would be in a concert on their tour, the first of which was in two days. The band would be taking the time for intensive last minute practice, as the show's new order and choreography had been discussed in detail, but hadn't actually been rehearsed.

The only issue regarding their rehearsal was Donghae.

He still refused to answer his door. And based on the doorman's reports he hadn't left since he'd been helped home. The worrisome part was that nothing had been disturbed in the kitchen; if Donghae hadn't left the dorm, he hadn't eaten anything in two days now.

YeongSaeng enlisted Kihun's help in this matter.

Kihun could make a particular version of Chopchae that no recipe could imitate, and it had become Donghae's favorite food. With a portion fit for three tucked into a lunchbox under his arm, YeongSaeng made his way out to the fire-escape. It was the back entrance Yuri had wondered about when SeungMi had almost magically slipped out of the dorm and made it to the practice rooms early in the morning so long ago.

The narrow metal ledge wasn't the safest route to anywhere, but it was an effective way to traverse from window to window. YeongSaeng was privileged in particular, as he knew that Donghae's window didn't lock correctly and a few force-filled shoves at just the right angle could get it open regardless of the owner's security measures.

Donghae was on his bed, lying askew with the covers in a wreck beside him, when YeongSaeng crawled through the window. He didn't move at YeongSaeng's arrival, though the person he'd thought was his best friend had been as unnoticeable as a colorful hanbok in the army's drab ranks. Instead he waited, with his arm flung over his face, to survey what YeongSaeng was going to do.

YeongSaeng peered around Donghae's room a bit before doing anything. It was a mess, a tragically unusual trait. Donghae had been throwing everything he owned around with all his might by the look of it. YeongSaeng had known he'd been right to worry.

"You should eat," YeongSaeng said quietly. "Kihun made Chopchae."

Donghae sat up, but didn't move to take the food YeongSaeng offered. His eyes were bloodshot and sunken with a severe lack of sleep and nutrition. He'd been torturing himself with his thoughts. At least he wasn't still wearing the clothes he'd been in the day he collapsed and was rushed to the hospital.

"Why are you here?" he asked hoarsely.

"I wanted to say I'm sorry for not telling you the moment I learned about Yuri," YeongSaeng replied without beating around the bush at all. "I wanted to make sure you were alive, though I know you're not okay. And I wanted to tell you a story."

"What?"

"Since I failed as a friend with telling you about Yuri, I thought I could maybe make up for it a bit by getting the whole story out of Dara, the version that she and Jay and Yuri support," YeongSaeng clarified.

Donghae didn't say anything, but he took the lunchbox and chopsticks YeongSaeng then extended towards him. YeongSaeng took this as permission to begin his tale. He retold everything that Dara had told him, he didn't leave anything out and even added his own suppositions. By the end of the story, YeongSaeng had recounted nearly every moment of Yuri's presence from Dara's perspective, play-by-play. He wasn't sure if he had convinced Donghae, but it was the best he could do for now.

Besides, he had a practice to get to.

YoungJae was willing to let Donghae slide because he seemed horrifically ill. Normally, he would have _strongly_ 'encouraged' the star to at least attend the practice, regardless of his participation in it. This time though, he was willing to let him rest. The leader wasn't sure how much of Donghae's illness was due to his fight with Jay or how much of his distemper with Jay had been caused by his exhaustion. Either way, he was ready to be lenient in regards to this case.

Donghae came out of his room for the first time in far too long that day, while the others were at practice. Marmy met him at his door, purring loudly as Donghae leaned down to scratch his ears before heading towards the common room.

He paused though, when he noted that the door to Jay's room was open.

He went inside without thinking, looking around at the mess that had been so absent while Yuri had been the room's occupant. Then a sparkle of sunlight on the bedside table caught his eye. The locket.

Donghae closed the distance between himself and the artifact in the space of a breath. He rolled it around in his hand, feeling the cool of the metal in his palm and fighting the resurging memory of Jay taking him out into the rain. Of _Yuri_ taking him there.

He clenched his fist around the pendant and glanced towards the closet. He remembered his Jay, _Yuri_, explaining about the fate of the Kim family after the supposed vacation. Donghae fell to his knees as he opened the door to investigate the jars of sand. They were still there, still three quarters full. Moving them around, and even picking a few of them up, Donghae spotted that a label was printed neatly on each one. The name of a location, and a picture of the siblings at that location. A few of the photos even had captures of the people who Donghae assumed were the Kim parents.

Pulling out the photograph he'd had crumpled in his pocket for a few days now, Donghae felt his frustration level rise again. What parts of the story had been true? Which parts had been Yuri's story and which had been Jay's? Why couldn't he be sure about anything anymore?

Wondering about who Yuri really was, and who _he_ was to her, Donghae vented his frustrations with a shout, throwing the necklace in his hand across the room with all the strength he had. He regretted it immediately.

Searching through the pile of clothes thrown along the wall that the locket had ricocheted off of, Donghae found it and breathed a sigh of relief. He put it into his pocket along with the photograph of a high-school aged Yuri. The locket had been scratched, and dented a bit, in the impact, but Donghae wasn't looking at it closely enough at the moment to notice.

He left Jay's room without tidying up at all. He also left the door as wide open as he had found it. He gave Marmy another pat on the head and then headed outside. His motorcycle brought him to HeeJin's shop within five minutes.

Donghae didn't go inside; instead he sat down on the steps undecided.

What exactly he wanted from HeeJin was a mystery to him, but she'd always been a comforting figure in his life.

He'd sat there for perhaps ten minutes when HeeJin's voice crackled over a speaker placed somewhere above his head. "Donghae, are just going to sit there all day or are you going to come inside? You're scaring all my customers away."

Looking up in confusion Donghae spotted a screen in the entry way with a speaker and a panel of buttons. He stood up to get a better look at it and saw HeeJin staring back at him. She smiled at him, saying, "I had this put in a few years ago, you've just never actually paused at the door before. Come inside, Donghae, it looks like you could use something to drink."

Donghae nodded and soon was sitting with HeeJin on the steps that led up to her loft from the main store floor. She'd invited him up to the actual kitchen in the residential area above her shop, but Donghae could hardly drag his feet into the establishment, let alone upstairs. HeeJin offered him tea, but he refused; hot chocolate was also pushed aside as both drinks reminded him too strongly of his Jay. Of Yuri.

Eventually HeeJin convinced him to eat Ramyun and as she went about cooking it. Donghae pulled the necklace Jay had stopped wearing out of his pocket, along with the now very crumpled photograph. By this time, Donghae could stare mindlessly at the photograph without any specific memories surfacing.

The locket was sort of the same, only it was more of a defensive response as, opposed to no specific memories surfacing, far too many to process were brought to light.

"I just can't stop thinking about it," Donghae said as HeeJin sat down next to him. She passed him one of the steaming bowls in her hand as he asked, "Have you talked to YeongSaeng recently?"

HeeJin replied, "If you mean has he told me what Dara says happened, then yes. How are you doing? I would have thought you wouldn't be willing to listen to him; more information he hadn't told you before and all that."

Nodding listlessly, Donghae responded, "I just don't know what I'm doing anymore, you know? I've never been this mad at him, and I don't like it. And it seemed like telling me about Dara was an apology, though he could have known what she'd thought happened since the beginning. I have no idea."

"I don't think he did, he's your friend before anything," HeeJin mentioned.

"I hope so," Donghae replied.

They paused in conversation for a long moment as they ate their Ramyun. Then HeeJin gave the chain in Donghae's hand a tug. Moving carefully, so as not to upset the contents of the bowl, Donghae let both the locket and the photograph fall from his grasp.

HeeJin set her half empty bowl aside and picked up the fallen picture as she examined the locket. She noted the slight dent with concern but didn't mention it. She could bring it up later, and that she would be able to repair it. Right now, Donghae probably wouldn't have wanted it fixed.

The photograph did work its way into the conversation, though.

It led to HeeJin's quiet question, "And what do you think about Yuri, now that Dara's told her side of the story?"

Donghae responded slowly to this question because he was unsure of the answer. "I still can't believe that she just walked away like that. I can't believe that she lied. I can't believe I fell for it . . . I don't know what to think."

"Whose story do you believe?"

"Does it matter?" Donghae asked in return. "I was betrayed either way. If what MinYeon told me is the truth, then Yuri was just a despicable character; someone I fell for because that was her plan. If Dara's right, then Yuri's a decent human being but one that held no genuine feelings for me at all. She could have told me at any point, she told Dara, and Jaebi, and SeungMi. But she never told me. I don't know which one to hope for, which one is worse . . . which one would make her easier to forget."

HeeJin let Donghae trail off into silent thought a moment before she asked quietly, "Do you want to forget her?"

"Yes."

"Don't you want to see her again? Even if it's just to set yourself straight?"

"No."

The quick answers from Donghae surprised HeeJin, and frightened her. Donghae was one of the most forgiving people she had ever known. Hearing him be so unwilling to even _meet_ with Yuri was unusual and disconcerting.

"Are you sure?"

"I don't want to see her ever again," Donghae replied.

The rest of Donghae's visit was fairly quiet. HeeJin did her best to comfort her junior. Yuri was out touring Seoul despondently, as she had been since she discovered Donghae's new found knowledge. She didn't usually return for the night until just before HeeJin closed up shop, so the store owner wasn't worried about the object of Donghae's current anger walking though the door even as she worried about Yuri's safety in her zombified wanderings. With knowledge that Yuri wouldn't return for hours, HeeJin would have liked for Donghae to spend most of the afternoon with her.

He however, refused to interrupt her business's workings. When a client with an appointment came in, he made his way quietly out.

When he arrived back at the dorms, the band was still out. Donghae ate a little more of the chopchae Kihun had prepared and then he went back to his room. This time he did not lock the door.

Marmy was curled up on his bed and Donghae let the cat remain there as he slid in beside the feline and promptly fell asleep. He needed to catch up on what he had missed in the past few days. It wasn't a deep or comfortable sleep by any standard, but it was a fitful rest that got rid of the worst tells of distress.

The next day Donghae went to practice.

He came in late, but at least he came. It was a hopeful sign to the band leaders.

Donghae didn't speak to anyone. He would respond only to a direct and quiet question from YeongSaeng. The side of the room that Jay was on may as well not have existed at all. It frustrated YoungJae and worried SooHyun.

As main leader, YoungJae couldn't just sit quietly as one of his members ignored his every word and acted in an openly hostile manner to another.

He ended practice and held Donghae behind for a chat. The singer didn't protest until YoungJae began to speak.

"Donghae, what's been going on with you lately? I've never seen you like this."

Shrugging off the hand YoungJae had lain on his shoulder, Donghae replied, "I'm fine."

"I know I'm not your closest friend," YoungJae continued. "But I am QuaszauR's leader; if something's going on that I should know about, you can tell me anything."

When Donghae didn't reply, YoungJae went on with a sigh, "I'm concerned about _Beautiful_. I think with _Crazy_'s premier, the netizens are going to harp on the fact that you have more than one solo. You know how they hate how much screen time you get in comparison to the rest of us."

With this, Donghae had to agree. The haters brought up huge arguments no matter what they did, but trying to clamp down the flames before the controversy began would allow their fans some breathing room. There would still be conflict between the hard-core haters and the die-hard fans, but hopefully it could be contained. "I was thinking of making it a duet, with YeongSaeng or JongHyun."

"That sounds pretty good," YoungJae mentioned. "You've performed it with YeongSaeng before, so it would be a logical progression. You should include Jay on the project as well."

"No."

YoungJae had never been subject to such blatant insubordination. He wasn't quite sure how to react. "You're in a family here. You're going to have to get over this fight you've had with Jay and learn to work with him again."

"It doesn't matter right now anyway," Donghae retorted. "_Crazy'_s not ready yet. I can't debut it tomorrow night."

YoungJae rubbed his temples. Donghae had never before given him so many problems; he was usually the one person YoungJae didn't have to worry about. "You need to get me the music track tomorrow at least. You need to debut it soon, if not tomorrow, then the next day. It doesn't have to be completely perfect; I doubt anyone at the concert will notice the subtleties you haven't ironed out yet. We only have a few concerts in Seoul before we head out on the rest of the tour, I want this song debuted in our hometown," YoungJae spoke firmly.

"I'll see what I can do," Donghae replied, a polite but not so subtle 'no'.

Giving up because he'd never had to face Donghae's stubbornness directed in this manner before, YoungJae let his singer walk out of the practice room without protest. He wasn't sure what he was going to do about the situation. This was a loop he'd been left out of, and it was one he would not be able to break his way into.

Donghae went back to his room at the door without speaking to anyone else. He didn't lock the door as YeongSaeng found out perhaps an hour later as he walked in with a bowl of food. He stared at Donghae as he reclined on the bed, writing feverishly in one of the notebooks he used for his songs.

"If you don't eat this, Kihun has personally given me permission to throw you out the window," YeongSaeng mentioned when Donghae didn't even look up as he came inside.

"Just leave it," Donghae replied, still keeping his eyes on what he was doing.

YoungJae's words had gotten to him, as much as he hated to admit it. He'd wanted to finish _Crazy_ weeks ago, but it hadn't happened. In no small part, this was due to Jay switching back with Yuri. That song had initially been written about Yuri after all.

And now it was being _re_-written about her.

At first the song had been a sweet story of falling in love with someone you least expected. Now, it was about falling for someone and then realizing how horribly wrong the attachment was. Neither version sat completely right with the author though. And his frustration was building as the time that had passed since his first deadline had whizzed by stretched out further and further.

YeongSaeng sat himself in the chair he'd used after sneaking in through the window and waved a piece of beef in Donghae's general direction. It caught Marmy's attention instantly. The cat was laying across Donghae's chest and when he jumped up in pursuit of the tasty snack, he knocked Donghae's breath out of him.

Sitting up and breathing deeply as Marmy purred while chewing his prize into a swallowable mush, Donghae listened as YeongSaeng asked, "What are you doing?"

He didn't respond immediately. When he did, it was not in direct response to YeongSaeng's question, though it did answer the inquiry in some ways, "I can't stop thinking about her. I don't even know what I'm thinking half the time, just her face and voice and every little thing I should have noticed."

"It's because you haven't gotten any closure," YeongSaeng replied empathetically.

When Donghae looked at him with an expression that was drawn and vacant, YeongSaeng continued, "You need to find her, talk to her again. You don't have to like her, or even hear her out, but you need to talk with her at least once more."

"How am I supposed to do that? She's probably not even in Korea anymore."

"She is."

Suspicious and worried about having another falling out with YeongSaeng, Donghae asked, "How do you know?"

"Jay's never actually performed in a concert before now," YeongSaeng stated. "I'm positive that Yuri will have wanted to stay long enough to see her big brother's actual debut. She'll be at the concert tomorrow, mark my words."

Donghae was rather unimpressed. "And how is that supposed to help me?"

"You could ask her to come see you during your solo intro," YeongSaeng suggested. "In a way that she'll get it, but no one else will. You could come up with something like that, couldn't you?"

"Because she's just going to stop by after practice if I ask her to," Donghae responded incredulously.

YeongSaeng shrugged. "She might."

"I think you're crazy."

"I might be, but you're going insane by doing nothing," YeongSaeng mentioned, pointedly glancing at the notebook full of scribbled out words and angry revisions.

YeongSaeng passed his friend the bowl of food he'd brought in and headed for the door, pausing before he left the room entirely. "What have you got to lose by trying?"

When he closed the door, Marmy gave a loud meow, as if agreeing. The cat then jumped back onto the bed, crawling to his spot on Donghae's pillow, as he eyed the bowl of food. "You have your own," Donghae chided, taking up the chopsticks and digging in. The cat gave him the most human of looks; dry kibble was a far cry from the tastiness of beef stew.

Marmy turned away from Donghae, determined to ignore the human, and scratched his chin on the corner of the notebook Donghae had been working in. This brought the singer's thoughts back to Yuri, and YeongSaeng's advice about her.

He wasn't sure that standing up on stage and muttering cryptic messages that the fans would surely misinterpret was worth it to arrange a meeting with the last person on earth he ever wanted to see again.

By the time of the concert, he still hadn't made up his mind.

In fact it wasn't until he was supposed to step off the stage that he actually decided to speak. He didn't know what he should say, and he didn't have anything in the way of a plan, so Donghae sort of ad-libed and hoped for the best. "Hey everyone, before I go I just have one more thing to say," he started off. "I wanna make a shout out to the one person I thought I knew better than any other. We parted ways rather abruptly last time, and I just wanted to say that we should talk and at least have a proper goodbye. Thanks everyone for bearing with me."

The audience awarded him a huge round of applause.

Every girl out there, invisible in the dark, thought he was referring to MinYeon. They believed that he wanted to clear the air of whatever they were fighting about and get back together. They were all delighted. Every girl, except one.

Yuri couldn't have found herself more depressed. She was sitting in prime viewing position, but as her brother waltzed onstage for his first genuine concert performance, she couldn't have noticed if a blue elephant were walking behind him.

As opposed to the other girls in the audience, Yuri knew Donghae was talking about her. She however also knew that this chat would not involve a clearing of the air and a happy scene from a drama where the two main characters realize how in love they were and how pointless their fight was. The way this reunion would go would be much more like a tragic drama of Shakespearean or Dickensian proportions; the male protagonist would calmly draw out the conditions of the restraining order, threatening to reveal the secret if the misguided female protagonist failed to comply exactly.

To meet with him under those circumstances would hurt more than Yuri could bear.

At the same time she couldn't bear to stay away either.

The next morning she found herself up early even for her. All of her new clothes had been packed neatly away into a box that HeeJin could ship out as soon as Yuri got on her plane. Her plane didn't leave for hours.

Unable to do the smart thing and simply wait for the time it would be appropriate to go to the airport, Yuri slipped on jeans and a hoodie and made her way out to the café that had been her morning haunt for so long.

"Saekki-nyeoseok, where have you been, ah, punk? Do you like to worry an old man's nerves?" the store owner chortled with gruff affection as he recognized the partially concealed face of his favorite early morning customer. He hadn't realized how attached he'd grown to the youngster until the kid had stopped showing up every morning.

Yuri smiled warmly at him. "Miane, Ajussi," she said brightly. "Some things have come up, and I don't think I'm going to be able to come back for a really long time."

"Is that so?" the owner said, unconvinced. "And whatever happened to that scary friend of yours? I haven't seen him around here lately either."

Yuri didn't respond for a long moment, the perky smile slowly falling from her face. "Ajussi," she said. "I really messed up this time."

"It can't be that bad, you two have fought before," the owner replied. "What, did you run out of that serum I gave you already?"

"A little headache medicine can't fix this one, Ajussi," Yuri admitted.

The shop owner laughed softly. "Babo-ya, my little fool, you'd be surprised what a bit of tea can fix. Especially when matters of an unsettled heart are concerned."

Yuri tried to convince him otherwise for another few minutes before she went to sit in her usual spot. She ate her breakfast slowly, thinking about how she was a horrible person, as she stared across the plaza at the dorm and JYG head quarters. For not doing anything when she was so close . . . she was terrible. She should apologize, Donghae deserved better than what she was giving him. Even so, she couldn't even think about facing what would surely be his disappointment in her; his calmness at the concert only confirmed that he had cut all his ties to her, had any formed to begin with.

In terms of wallowing, this episode wasn't a horrible one, as Yuri had to leave before she could really sink into despair. She had a plane to catch after all.

Before she walked out the door the shop owner shuffled out from behind his counter and caught her arm. "Just something for the road," he said. "I can't let my favorite little punk go it alone, can I?"

He handed the kid a thermos of tea, mixed with his special brew of cure all. He didn't know the kid's name, or how old he was, or if his pretty face really belonged to the _guy_ so many people came into his shop looking for, but even so he'd grown very fond of his morning customer. The solidering-on expression he was wearing moved the shop owner deeply, and as he had no kids of his own to care for he could spare the effort it took to help this youngster out.

Yuri smiled, taking the thermos. "Thanks, Ajussi. I'll come back and see you eventually, I promise."

"You'd better, kid!" He called as she headed out the door, "I'll be waiting!"

The bus ride back to HeeJin's didn't take very long; Yuri's tea hadn't even cooled off yet. The hot liquid burned her tongue as she sipped it gingerly on her way upstairs. She made the final checks of the room she'd been using and collected her things. Just as she was about to walk out the door and meet HeeJin for her goodbyes, a commotion sounded downstairs.

Donghae.

Yuri saw him though the dark glass of the windows surrounding HeeJin's loft.

The sight froze Yuri in her tracks.

Below, HeeJin was stirred into a flurry of motion.

The drawn and distraught expression on Donghae's face had her instantly concerned. Besides that was the fact that Yuri was just upstairs and HeeJin wasn't sure if such ought to be revealed or hidden at this point.

Donghae didn't notice HeeJin's glances upstairs. He was too busy with his own thoughts. He'd already been to MinWoo's but the entrepreneur hadn't been home. He was planning on trying again later, but for now being on his own was not an appealing prospect. Donghae was a terribly social person; he _needed_ to be around people, especially when he was stressed.

And with YeongSaeng . . . busy, Donghae needed to find someone else.

Preferably someone with alcohol, but anyone was better than no one.

This story, HeeJin needed to get out of Donghae as quickly as possible. She was terrified that something _else_ had happened, something that would make the situation even worse. That he'd fought with YeongSaeng again, and that he was sinking even deeper into depression. That she wouldn't be able to help.

Donghae was more than willing to tell her what had happened, though his voice had a bitter tinge as he spoke, it was a good story after all.

It had started with the early morning photo shoot, their last before leaving Seoul. Of course the fans had known about it, they somehow knew QuaszauR's schedule before the band did on a regular basis. And despite the shoot having been scheduled ridiculously early in hopes of dissuading the fans from coming to watch, more than a hundred love struck teenagers had shown up in the park that was to be the shoot's venue.

They were what YeongSaeng, and the rest of QuaszauR for that matter, was busy with that meant they couldn't console Donghae. That soothed HeeJin's worries a bit, but Donghae brushed over that fact in the telling of his story, as it would only actually make sense to his sunbae after he was finished with the whole tale.

When the band had gotten to the site, they'd made the usual greetings and signed things and taken fan-photos and then they'd gotten to work.

It was the typical photo shoot at first. The fans were polite and remained quiet enough to let their Idols focus. The Idols in turn had given them little signs of appreciation throughout the early morning.

And then an acceptable time to wake had rolled around and Kwon MinYeon had made her appearance. The fans were delighted, at first. All of QuaszauR though, instantly went off the wall. The only people who hadn't disliked her before were now the ones that hated her presence most, and _none_ of them wanted to deal with her at that particular moment. Or ever again, in point of fact.

She however was quite excited.

The fans were also of a cheery demeanor, guessing as she did that Donghae would be delighted by her visit. She had assumed that Donghae's words at last night's concert had been about her. He'd left her rather suddenly after all, and surely he would want to talk things out and get back together. They had been in love for so long, and with far fewer fights than most couples, that some sort of a spat had to have been due. Now, things could be cleared up in no time.

Unfortunately for her, the Yuri-obsessed Donghae hadn't gotten that memo, was in no mood to deal with his ex-girlfriend, _and _had little mind for how the fans would react if he told her off once and for all.

She was humiliated.

The entire fiasco had been caught on at least twenty fan-cams and even the professional behind-the-scenes camera. It was probably all over the internet already.

The fans reacted in two distinct ways to the news that MinYeon was not the girl Donghae had been talking about. Half of them cried for MinYeon and worried over the mysterious love their Idol had found. The other half acted a little more creatively.

They claimed they had known the concert speech wasn't about MinYeon all along; because it was about them.

Too many girls to count had rushed the set, trying to get to their 'lover' and console him over his frustrations with MinYeon. Security didn't stand a chance. _QuaszauR_ didn't stand a chance.

It had been all Donghae could do to get out of the mess so that the event didn't spread. As it was, the mob was probably still out of control.

HeeJin had to smile. She'd seen the concert footage and had hoped Donghae's speech had been about Yuri. She'd had no way to be sure before, but now even Donghae had admitted it.

Looking upstairs to where she knew Yuri was standing, and could see and hear everything that was going on, HeeJin tried to will the girl to come down and talk to no avail. Yuri was still frozen, her deer-in-the-headlights impersonation perfected.

Donghae didn't notice his sunbae's glance.

He had already moved on to fretting over his stagemanship from the night before. He was regretting it horribly. So far it had caused him major problems, and he wasn't of the opinion that it would cause him any good in the future. After all, what good could possibly come? At best Yuri would show her face and he would be made even more miserable, at worst, these crazy fans would never leave him alone. He was already dreading the next Gag Concert QuaszauR was going to appear on.

He was dreading interviews, and fan comments, and what the President would say. Manager Ma and Coordinator Yuna had been fairly quiet on the subject, but Ma was a spineless little twerp and Yuna's forte was not the social circumstances of her charges; it was not in her job description to handle that aspect. The President of JYG Entertainment, on the other hand, was all about the profit QuaszauR could generate for him; and a cohesive group structure was vital for the maximum income to be developed.

The President would have some things to say to him, Donghae was sure, and he was going to attend tomorrow night's concert.

HeeJin volunteered to make tea and left Donghae sitting at a table downstairs as she went up to the kitchen in her loft. She found Yuri and promptly began begging the girl to come down and talk things out.

Yuri refused. "If I just came downstairs, Donghae would know that you've been letting me stay here. I don't want him to get mad at you, you don't deserve it."

HeeJin tried to wave her worries away. "I don't care. He's fought with me before, we've been friends for too long to have never fought. Besides, I have a back door you could use, so you could come around front and walk in like you're here for a visit."

As HeeJin made tea she kept trying to convince Yuri to come down. Yuri ran out of viable excuses not to after only a few minutes, but she still refused to comply. She just couldn't face him; not after seeing him though the glass, so close that she could see the lines of stress etched into his face and could hear the strain in his voice as he worked to speak. Not while knowing that she'd caused it.

Yuri felt his every movement deep in her core as if he'd hit her. She was sure he wanted to, he'd hit Jay after all and Jay hadn't even been the liar he was so angry at. There was no way she could survive unscathed through an encounter with him so angry at her that he would violently lash out at anyone connected to her. Even if he didn't physically assault her, her mental state would suffer a huge blow.

She just couldn't do it.

HeeJin relented and left Yuri to her own devices upstairs as she brought the tea down.

Yuri stood long enough to watch Donghae take a mug of tea from HeeJin, but after that she fled. The back door HeeJin had told her about became her escape, and Yuri left everything behind except for the thermos still clutched in her hand.

She was a horrible person, to have been so close and to have done nothing. Donghae deserved at least an apology, and she couldn't even give him that for her own lack of moral fiber, of fortitude in the face of fault. Once outside, she took a bus to the airport.

She didn't get on her plane.

She should have.

But she didn't.

Instead she sat at her gate and watched the second plane she was supposed to have been on take off without her. She sat in the airport, feeling completely alone even with people milling around her, for the rest of the afternoon. She sipped her tea despondently, by now it was bordering on cold rather than cool.

Meanwhile, Donghae confessed to HeeJin that he hoped Yuri wouldn't come. Sort of. His confused delivery made HeeJin wonder if she should be glad that she had heard the click of the back door signaling Yuri's exit. She could tell that he wanted to see her again more than anything, but he was convinced that it would be best if they never met.

It was a very frustrating situation for them all to be stuck in, and as it was things didn't seem to be moving anywhere. HeeJin was a step away from spilling everything all afternoon. She even went with Donghae to see MinWoo once his bar opened, thinking that just maybe a little alcohol would fortify her nerves and allow her to take the leap.

Things didn't go as she planned, but Donghae was able to lighten up a bit by getting his sunbaes to dance together. It made him feel good about himself, not everything he was had been uprooted by Yuri's mysterious seizure of his life. Though he was having trouble figuring out who he was, he still was able to help people manage their problems.

At the same time though, he realized two things. First that he'd been able to trigger HeeJin and MinWoo's dance because of tricks he'd picked up from Yuri. And secondly, that the last time he'd been in a bar for a purpose other than getting as drunk as physically possible, he'd been with Yuri, and he had discovered just how neatly she fit under his arm as she slept.

Upon realizing this, it became his goal to get as drunk as physically possible.

That was the extent of the control Yuri still had over his mind, if he was the least bit conscious, the images of her face in comparison to her brother's were all that floated behind his eyes. He'd managed to pinpoint the day they had switched back fairly quickly, and he'd been going over everything that had happened around that day a hundred times a day, desperate to think of something that showed she'd held any remorse, any guilt at all. _Anything_ to indicate that she had cared for him.

He couldn't though.

That was the main reason he didn't believe Dara over MinYeon when it came to Yuri's motives. Though MinYeon would be the kind of girl he'd expect to twist things in her favor, and Dara was traditionally the most honest person he'd ever met, Yuri hadn't given a single sign to him that she'd regret leaving. And the little things she'd done before leaving could have just been the marks of a clever actress, she'd done phenomenally in the filming for _HeartQuake_'s music video after all.

Trying not to think about it, he flirted shamelessly with the lady bartender MinWoo had hired. She wasn't as good a bar keep as the owner, but MinWoo couldn't manage the bar, and the hotels, and actually _work_ at the bar as well. The girl was pretty, but her face was too narrow and she had a large forehead in Donghae's eyes. Sure she was glamorous, but that didn't matter. She wasn't as cute or delicate as Yuri.

When he was at least drunk enough to not be able to drive, Donghae got up from the bar and walked out in the Seoul evening. He didn't want to bother HeeJin for a ride, as he'd _finally_ gotten her to talk with MinWoo again. Besides, the cool night air would help to clear his head.

As he wandered in a vaguely homeward direction his mind played tricks on him. He thought he saw Yuri at least three different times, though she was surely back in the United States by now.

She was not in the States. She was on a bus in Seoul, riding its route in circles. She'd seen it once in a drama; that taking a bus route to wallow would allow her to function normally when she got off the public transit device. So far it hadn't worked.

By the time the sun began to rise, it still hadn't worked but Yuri was too exhausted to remain. She got off a block away from HeeJin's store and stumbled up to the bed she'd been using; only just managing to get there before she collapsed.

HeeJin was very surprised to see her. She'd thought the poor girl had left Seoul, taken the plane she'd been planning on using to cart her away. She was even more surprised to see her in such sorry shape. At first HeeJin thought Yuri may have found Donghae, talked things out, and had received a chilly response. If that was true though, Donghae surely would have gone straight to MinWoo and the barkeep hadn't called.

With no other prospect presenting itself, HeeJin simply tried her best to care for the girl as she slept. The entire day passed without so much as a twitch from Yuri and HeeJin went frequently to nervously ensure that Yuri was still breathing regularly and hadn't developed a fever. When Yuri finally did awake, HeeJin had a hot meal waiting for her.

"The next flight to LA that I can get you on leaves at eleven thirty tonight," she mentioned quietly as Yuri sullenly sipped at her Ramyun. "If you still want to leave, that is," she added without hope of the answer she would have liked to hear.

Yuri didn't even give a verbal response. The despondent look on her face was answer enough for HeeJin though; Yuri didn't _want_ to leave, but she was going to. "I think you should go with me to one last concert though," HeeJin mentioned looking straight into Yuri's eyes. "It'd be good for you, getting a bit of closure and all that. You could see Jay on stage one last time and we'll leave to catch your plane after his solo, he's premiering _Pretty Girl_ tonight isn't he? There'll be plenty of time to get to the airport like that."

For a long moment Yuri didn't say anything. HeeJin feared briefly that she'd gone into shock or something and had been rendered physically unable to respond. "_Pretty Girl_ is a great song, and Jay will perform it really well, he made up half the choreography for it on his own after all," she murmured, at least.

HeeJin took this as some form of ascent and went to work coaxing Yuri into a shower and another meal in time for the pair to head off to the concert early enough to get settled with snack food in their seats. Food was a big thing for HeeJin, she'd grown up in a family of artists, primarily culinary artists. Whenever there was something wrong with the world, good food had been the number one cure-all in her childhood household; the nachos, popcorn, and chocolates that were served at the concert venue were included in HeeJin's assessment of 'good' food.


	17. Concert Catharsis

The venue that this concert was being held at was the one that had been the intended venue for Jay's debut stage; and after a quick flash of passes, Yuri was able to navigate easily to her seat as HeeJin went off in search of her go-to creature comfort. HeeJin returned just as the lights went down and the reel of introductory music began to hum through the speakers.

Meanwhile everything was tense and quiet under the stage. None of the lightheartedness that was QuaszauR's concert hallmark was present. The staff members were all antsy as they tried to reason it out. They had known that the band was in the midst of a major disagreement between members, but they hadn't thought it could have ever been this bad. They'd been tiptoeing around all day, even the Cold-Coordi herself, the woman who whipped QuaszauR into singing shape without paying any mind to their personal matters, was ginger with her charges.

There were quite obviously three distinct camps. Jay, Jaebi, and the girls of QuaszauR Sweet made up one, settled in the corner that was as far away from the staff rooms and staging areas as possible. On the exact opposite side of the sub-stage space was another camp, composed of Donghae, YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, and Kihun. The two camps seemed perfectly willing to be at war forever.

The third camp was the one that was most obviously agitated, worried to the point of being unable to conceal it. YoungJae, Jinki, JongHyun, and Chansung hovered between the two other camps, fretting over how complete the split had become. It had even split SooHyun from Kihun's side for the first time in years. They didn't know what had caused it, and they didn't know how to fix it.

Going up onstage together for the group songs was sheer torture for them all. Somehow they managed to survive it, and even make the fans think that everything was just as per usual. The longer than usual pauses between songs were permissible because this show was entirely different than the last ones they had played there was bound to be a bit of confusion on the first run; the concert's song order had been shuffled around, the choreography had been altered, breaks re-arranged, and new songs debuted.

One of these new songs was Jay's _Pretty Girl_. It was a cute song, caught somewhere between smoothe R&B and bubbly pop. It was a new side of Jay's voice for the fans to hear and evaluate. Seeing as it was about seeing a girl for the first time and developing a crush, it went well before _Beautiful_. When followed by Jay's _Only for You,_ and YeongSaeng's _So In Love,_ the set made for a perfect, complete, storyline from first meeting to wedding day and thus was slotted in to be a main feature of the show. The initial plan had been to have YeongSaeng, Jay, and Donghae all go up together and simply stay there during the block of songs; to show the camaraderie of the three and to make it even more apparent that the songs were meant to be heard together as a single story. Besides, they were supposed to be each other's back up dancers anyway, so it just made sense to keep them all up there.

However, Donghae and YeongSaeng would barely suffer playing the same stage as Jay, let alone working with him closely on a small scale.

Because of that, and YoungJae's inability to physically _force_ them to cooperate, Jay went up utterly alone for the first time since his debut. He handled it much better than Yuri would have and that fact only made Donghae's camp all the more sullen. Kihun wasn't fully aware of what was going on, but he'd known Donghae and YeongSaeng since middle school and if something had caused those two criminally forgiving people to truly turn against Jay, then he would do his best to support them.

His attachment to SooHyun only made him want to support Donghae more, as she'd for some reason forsaken her leaderly neutrality for the sake of a rookie singer that had done nothing but cause problems for the group. Kihun didn't understand it, and it frustrated him. He'd liked Jay, but this was too much.

The other two leaders were remaining neutral, antsy and distressed, but still neutral.

YoungJae especially was under pressure. He was supposed to know everything about his band, he was the leader and he was the one responsible for the members' well-being _and_ their performance. That he had no idea what was going on here was the single most nerve wracking thing he'd ever gone through. Especially as JYG's President was watching the concert from his VIP box right by the stage.

The fans were seated too far away to really be able to see the strain between the members, particularly as the band was working very hard to pretend it wasn't there while onstage. President Ahn, however, was seated at a distance where the break would surely be in plain view. Certainly, the effects it was having on the band's performance would be easily spotted by the man who had created the musical phenomenon.

How President Ahn would react, and how much he was going to yell at YoungJae for, were other things that the leader didn't know and was frustrated by.

One other thing YoungJae didn't know was that soon he wouldn't have to be frustrated over the fact that he didn't know what was going on. He didn't know that MinYeon, scraped and scorned and out for revenge, was standing just off stage as Jay's solo finished up. She had gotten inside easily; as both a close contact of QuaszauR and a JYG headlining artist, the bouncers didn't even blink as she skated by. In the same way it was easy enough to get a microphone from one of the stage techs, and then stay out of the band's way by hovering back stage at stage level rather than beneath it.

When Jay descended from the stage after his first solo ended, MinYeon walked casually out to greet the fans. She had already planned out exactly what she was going to say; her issues were with the home wrecker that had brain-washed her Donghae into thinking that _she_ didn't matter. And thus the perfect time to reveal the dastardly plot would be after his solo, so he wouldn't be able to defend himself, and before Donghae's, so the fans' sympathies could help him come to his senses.

The fans responded with cheers, thinking that everything had finally been all sorted out and Min-Hae was back. They hoped that she was going to intro Donghae's _Beautiful,_ seeing as the song had supposedly been written about her.

"Hey everyone! How's it going? I bet you've been wondering what's been up with your favorite fifteen, huh?" She began to thunderous applause and cheers. The fans were now under the impression that MinYeon wasn't just going to show that things were back to normal, but was going to explain what had happened during the spat. "Or fave _fourteen, _as it were," she added, much to the fans' confusion.

"You, like my sweet Donghae, have been tricked for far too long. The Kim Jaebeom that just sang is not the Jay you saw debut a few months ago. That was the real Kim Jaebeom, who has finally decided to grace our stage with his presence. Until recently, the person you supported under Jay's name was none other than her twin sister, Kim YuRi."

By now, the attention of those below stage had been caught. The three camps were all frozen as they listened, unable to react to MinYeon's proclamation. Jay's camp was motionless with fear, wondering why this was happening and at a loss for what to do about it. Donghae's camp was immobile with fury, had they made to move, they quickly would have lost control of their actions and therefore chose to remain still. The neutral camp was simply stunned; surprised beyond action at what they were hearing, and who it was coming from for that matter.

"Kim Yuri and her brother switched places just after his debut, with his rather dismal performance, they feared that he would not be popular enough with you fans to warrant his place in the band," MinYeon was continuing, creating the meat for the largest celebrity scandal to ever hit the news without batting an eye as she went. "To prevent this, they hatched a plot to get _you_ on his side by first getting _Donghae_ on his side. You all know how open and trusting Donghae is, and how defenseless he can be when it comes to 'defenseless' little girls."

The fans did know, it had caused something of a scandal when it was revealed that Donghae was spending nearly all of his take-home income on SeungMi rather than his girlfriend. This had eventually been settled once SeungMi had gained enough confidence for him to stop having to baby her through everything, and MinYeon had professed that Donghae's sweetness in regards to his family was something that she loved about him.

This was apparently entirely different. "Ever since Jay's debut, Yuri has been systematically tricking her way into Donghae's good graces; messing with his head and getting him hooked on her. The tricks she used fascinated him, hypnotized him if you will, and she heartlessly exploited his growing attachment. The attachment she built in him drove him to break up with me." MinYeon knew she had her audience captivated, she was a great actress after all and she knew her way around a drama. "A few weeks ago, Donghae discovered the plot as Jay and Yuri switched places again. You saw the results of that . . ."

At this point Donghae was too fed up to care anymore about possibly offending the crowd of fans above. MinYeon's speech was getting on his nerves.

He stood abruptly, commanding no one in particular, but presumably YeongSaeng, "Take me up, wait ten seconds and bring the platform back down."

Without waiting to see if anyone responded, Donghae stalked off to stand on the platform that had brought Jay down from the stage. It took a second before YeongSaeng was able to come to his senses and tell the stage tech in control of the platform controls what Donghae wanted.

As he rose on the hydraulic lift, MinYeon continued, "The worst part about Yuri's treacherous tricks is the lingering affect they're having on Donghae. He's still brainwashed, unable to see that she just used him. That's why you've been getting news about how we've been fighting. Please, don't blame him for this. It's only Jay's doing that has him acting so meanly. He's still the Donghae we know and love, I'm sure of it."

Her statement received some enthusiastic applause, but within seconds the sound had risen to all out cheers as Donghae rose into view. He didn't so much as look at the fans as he stormed down the stage to where MinYeon was, grabbed her wrist tightly, and towed her back to the platform he'd come up on. He got her to stand in the center of it by taking a vice-like grip of her shoulder and physically restraining her there, as the platform began to sink. He went with it until it had dropped him to about waist height with the stage. From there, he knew MinYeon wouldn't clamber back on to the stage. He bent down so his head was below stage, shouting, "Cue music." Then he grabbed onto the edge of the stage and hoisted himself back up and away from MinYeon.

As he waited for the music to start, Donghae said tersely, "QuaszauR has no comment on this matter, and MinYeon is no longer a band affiliate in a position to relay reliable information to our fans." It was all he was willing to say on the subject and he began his performance no worse for wear than he would have had MinYeon not interrupted the show, leading to a wave of uncertainty that spread almost tangibly though the crowd.

Yuri meanwhile was standing at her seat, her mouth hanging open in disbelief. She couldn't process what was going on to an even greater extent than the rest of the crowd. As the first chorus of _Beautiful_ came up, Yuri made a decision.

She may have been unwilling to face Donghae's disappointment in her to do the right thing and apologize, but she was willing to face his wrath and more in order to protect her brother. She was not about to let Jay's dream crash down after all of this.

As HeeJin called worriedly after her, Yuri darted from her seat. She was taking the roundabout route that she'd been dragged down the first time she'd been in this particular stadium. It wasn't the most efficient route, but it was one Yuri was sure would get her where she wanted to go. The one stumbling block was that, even with a backstage pass, she wouldn't be allowed into the basement levels that she needed to get to. The good news though, was that she recognized the two massive bodyguards that would block her way and knew that with the right persuading, she could get past them.

All she needed was the right look.

And some nachos.

She found the perfect solution in the form of a regular guy coming back from the concessions stand, he'd taken a wrong turn and was horribly lost. Yuri went to kindly help him out. The transfer of directions, and a grand total of 67 cents in change that Yuri had in her pockets, got Yuri a plastic tray of nachos and a hat large enough to hide most of her hair. Having already been dressed in jeans and a hoodie, Yuri looked almost exactly like she did when popstar 'Jay' had been among the citizens.

Waltzing comfortably towards the bouncers with the brim of her hat pulled low over her eyes, Yuri waited until they stopped her to look up in acted surprise. "Hey, guys, I remember you! Weren't you the ones who found me when I'd gotten lost on my debut night? You guys are awesome!"

They eyed her suspiciously. She gestured with the nachos, saying sheepishly, "These things are my guilty pleasure, but no one ever brings me them, so I have to run up and get them myself. I don't know what I would have done if you guys hadn't helped me get back down here before the show last time!"

It was apparent that they did remember bringing a popstar with a pretty-boy face down from the concession stand with a tray of nachos in his hand. But they didn't remember seeing one leave now, and they were _sure_ he'd already gone in.

"Hey, guys," Yuri said. "I'd love to stay and chat, I owe you guys one, but I've got another song in like three minutes and _Pretty Girl's_ high note _killed_ my throat, so I'd like to get some hot, salty cheese on it first. Besides, I stole some random stuff I found backstage to sneak out here, and I'm sure whoever they belong to is gonna miss them pretty soon."

Skeptical to the last, the bouncers gave her a pat on the back as an indication that they were watching her, and let her through.

The nachos were trashed as she sprinted through the basement to the entrance to the sub-stage. Her hat was bounced off somewhere along the way and it was only thanks to the time she spent training with QuaszauR that Yuri managed to arrive without feeling horribly breathless.

SeungMi was the first to see her, because Jay and Dara were involved in a shouting match with MinYeon, who was being restrained by two large security guards. "Yuri?"

"I need to talk to Donghae."

Within a second Yuri was stepping backwards as she fought to keep from falling as Dara's weight crashed into her, flinging her arms tearfully around Yuri's neck. "Yuri!"

Yuri hugged Dara back fiercely; she'd missed the singer horribly since they had stopped having lunch together. After only a second though, Dara jumped back and brushed her tears away. "Donghae's still on stage. And since Donghae . . . doesn't really feel like talking right now, your best bet is to go up while he's singing, catch him off guard."

"But first you need to change," MinJi mentioned.

SeungMi agreed, "If you go out looking like you do now, the fans might actually kill you. Right now, you look like the despicable person MinYeon described."

"Do we have time for that?"

SooHyun nodded. "This is a special version of _Beautiful_, there's an entirely separate ballad in the middle of it. We'll have enough time if we move quickly."

Thus, amidst hugs and tears, Yuri was again dragged into a particular dressing room. This time the girls got her changed into a flowy white tea dress, SooHyun's, which made her look like a goddess; especially when paired with tall white heels with silky ribbons that wove around her calves. Somehow as she'd been changing, JiEun had been able to style her hair into a wavy side ponytail that spilled over her shoulder, and MinJi had managed to spruce up her face with just enough make-up to give her depression-wrought visage a polished look.

In less time than Yuri would have thought possible, she was being ushered back though the crowded sub-stage and onto the platform that would take her up to face her worst fear. Jay was beside her for a moment, giving her a hand-mic, kissing her cheek, and saying, "Good Luck."

He jumped off as the platform began to rise.

At the same moment, YeongSaeng jumped on.

As they disappeared above, YoungJae turned on Jay and Dara. "What the hell is going on around here?"

There was no room for hesitation in his words, and dutifully, the girls of Sweet helped Jay explain the entire situation, from the very beginning. Most of those out of the loop listened carefully to their every word, but Kihun knew that someone ought to go manage things onstage. He ran off as soon as he thought of what to do, getting to a spot where he had a good vantage point of the stage and from which he had control of what was going on. A stage tech was unceremoniously pushed aside, and Kihun stole his headset.

"I'm the only person who's allowed to touch _anything_ for the next twenty minutes," he announced firmly. The staff was shocked to hear the idol being so rude and so forceful, but they all complied and diverted the power of their controls to the main panel at which Kihun was standing.

From his vantage point, Kihun was able to watch the action below as he settled in, figuring out all of the controls before him. YeongSaeng pulled Yuri close to him as they rose on the platform, whispering harshly, "You had better have a _good_ explanation for everything you've put him though."

"I don't," Yuri said honestly. "And I'm sorry for that, but I don't. All I've got is a babo-oppa, and years of practice for taking the blame. I can go back to the States and never be heard from again, but my fool of a big brother loves it here and he deserves to have his fair shot at making it."

YeongSaeng gave her a long look, but let her go when she stepped forward and raised the mic to her mouth. Having no other way of getting his attention other than stopping the show outright, Yuri began to sing. The fans had seen her arrival with YeongSaeng and were murmuring in a roar as they wondered who she was.

Donghae didn't wonder for more than a second.

He knew who the voice belonged to.

He didn't turn around immediately. He finished up the verse he was singing and waited for the dance break to _force_ him to stop singing before he faced her. Even though he was technically facing her, Donghae refused to look at the girl he'd thought was a guy, thought that he'd loved. Instead he looked at YeongSaeng's shoes, took a heavy breath, and asked, "Why are you here, Yuri?"

The overwhelming gasp of the crowd hid most of the strain in Donghae's voice as he said her name, something he was grateful for.

He wasn't quite sure what to think at the moment. Yuri was still in Korea, and she'd ignored his earlier plea for closure. She'd been somewhere so close to him, and hadn't bothered to stop by and give him any kind of explanation. And yet now she was on stage with him for some unimaginable reason.

"I'm here to apologize, for what it's worth," Yuri said, the mic slightly lowered, but still able to catch what she was saying. Raising it, she added in address to the fans, "And I'm here for my brother, to explain things before you decide to shun him."

Above, Kihun messed with a few of the controls, looping the audio track so that it played only the instrumental part of the song over and over again. He also tweaked the volume so that it was little more than a quiet trill in the background as Yuri spoke.

Neither Yuri's voice, nor the music, could be heard over the outrage of the crowd for a solid minute. Yuri bore with it patiently, keeping her eyes on the despondent face of Donghae, who still refused to look at her, and feeling horribly guilty for everything she had done to him. It hadn't been fair to him. And no apology could change that.

The fans however, could at least have their fury focused away from Jay.

As the ruckus began to die down a bit, Yuri walked carefully out to the very edge of the stage, careful not to wander into Donghae's sightline as she did so. YeongSaeng moved with her, coming to place a comforting hand on Donghae's shoulder as he refused to turn around and watch Yuri attempt to deal with the fans.

"You don't have to believe me, and you don't have to forgive me," Yuri said to the black wall of hostile fans spread out before her. "But you do have to listen to me, because I'm not going to leave Seoul until you do; and I know you guys want me out of here more than anything right now. So just sit quietly for a few minutes, okay?"

The only response was a wave of murmuring that didn't rise to unbearable levels. Yuri took it as a sort of grudging agreement. "Now, let's start from the beginning. Kim Jaebeom is a wonderful person. His promotions in Japan were grueling and he put his all into them; and despite working twenty three hour days regularly, he was willing to take on extra work to help out a friend. During the extracurricular activity, he got hurt, really hurt. So hurt that if he had waited to debut until he was perfectly healed, he would have only been able to manage it a few weeks ago. He was willing to wait, but QuaszauR's concert wasn't. Two days was not enough notice to cancel a debut."

Yuri paused, gathering breath and courage. She was about to make a lot of people even more upset with her than already were. "It was my idea to make the switch. I've always looked like my brother, and I've always been able to sing like him. I told him it would be easy and that no one would ever know. He resisted, but I went ahead with the plan regardless. I didn't tell anyone inside QuaszauR about the switch."

Yuri pressed forward with her delivery of an explanation slowly. She was going to make sure that _she_ was blamed for everything she could possibly get away from Jay. "My brother didn't know about anything that was going on here while he was undergoing treatment in Japan. Anything that happened here happened because of me. Also, I never once did anything for the purpose of getting the other members to like Jay; my brother is a kind and wonderful person. He doesn't need me to trick the members into liking him. In fact if I'd tried to, I probably would have ended up making everyone hate him. Things actually got fairly close to that a few times as it was."

There was a moment of shock that ran though the audience with each of her statements. It was a shiver that ran though the others onstage as well. Donghae still refused to look at her, but he did look up to meet YeongSaeng's eyes. He _knew_ that Jay and Yuri had been in near constant contact the entire time she'd been in Korea.

YeongSaeng stared back at Donghae supportingly, at a loss of what to say to help his friend process it all, especially as he himself couldn't even decide if she was telling the truth or making it all up.

"I'm begging you," Yuri said as she finished up her shortened version of the story. "Jay is entirely innocent in all of this. He had no idea what so ever of what was going on in Korea until he got back, and when he did get back the charade fell apart because Jay is physically incapable of lying to anyone. I am the only one you should blame."

When Yuri stopped talking the entire stadium went dead silent for a solid minute. No one was quite sure how to react to the proclamation. Least of all Donghae.

He did end up looking in her direction, as he tried to rationalize what he'd heard.

The woman he saw standing at the end of the stage took his breath away. She was twice as beautiful as the Yuri he'd been picturing in his mind for so long now, even from behind. And she was standing with the posture he recognized, her figure so familiar. It made the fact that he didn't trust a thing she said, a thing she'd _ever_ said, hurt more than he thought something like this could hurt.

Donghae could tell by the way she was standing that this was the last place she wanted to be. He could tell by the way she held her mic that she hadn't been getting enough sleep. He could tell by the tone of her voice that she was going to stick to this story until they believed her, regardless of how many people she was going to upset.

The thought made him think of the first time 'Jay' had done something that made the band truly upset. It was the first time there had even been that kind of an upheaval within the group; when he'd gotten Jaebi and SeungMi to finally talk about their relationship. She'd been so convinced that she was doing the right thing, despite the fact that she had probably thought she'd ruined her brother's chances for a peaceful life within the band. She'd been forced to tears by that.

She didn't seem very far away from them now.

And just like she'd been then, she was stubborn and steadfast in her cause.

"Yuri." Donghae hardly realized that he called out to her until she turned around to face him, keeping her eyes down at first and slowly raising them to meet his. Sure enough, they were filled with bubbles of moisture. "Why?"

"I did it because Jay needed me too," Yuri replied, quietly. Even more softly, she added, "I'm sorry. . . I never told you, and I should have. But . . . I never lied to you either. I didn't tell you the whole truth, but nothing I _did_ tell you was a lie."

As she spoke, her eyes dropped from his face. She simply couldn't face his disappointment in her. He'd believed that she was a genuinely good person, and he'd been proven so wrong. Even if there was some way to gain his forgiveness, she would always be a different person to him, and she greatly mourned the loss of his esteem.

He probably didn't believe her.

The fans certainly didn't.

One of them took action to get her off the stage, convinced that these were more tricks that would brainwash Donghae out of his relationship with MinYeon. The anonymous fan pitched a full water bottle in the direction of the stage. Many of the fans had them, things to toss their idols between songs to show their appreciation and love. This however was not gently tossed so that the person on stage could collect it; rather, this was hurled with the intent to inflict harm.

And it did so quite effectively, hitting Yuri on the shoulder in such a way so as to knock her forward half a dozen steps. It was only her practice in shoes that made her Jay's height that prevented her from twisting an ankle beyond repair. Donghae lurched forward instinctively, but his tangled thoughts kept him from rushing to make sure she was okay.

As soon as she was no longer struggling for balance, Yuri stood up straight and proud and turned to face the audience. She bowed. "I am sincerely sorry for the trouble I have caused," she said before rising up to stand tall again.

It was the Jay that had endlessly riled his bandmates' nerves, the Jay who had messed everything up and somehow made it come back together better than before, the Jay QuaszauR knew . . . and loved. YeongSaeng made up his mind, thinking over everything he'd learned about Yuri and everything he had known about 'Jay'. He would easily be mad at her for a year, but he could forgive her and would never wish her harm.

The fan that had assaulted her had assaulted a member of his family, and he was not just going to let that slide.

He gave Donghae's shoulder one last squeeze and then he stepped forward to stand even with Yuri. "That wasn't very nice," he said, adjusting his headset into its proper position as opposed to the half off way he wore it below stage. "Yuri's been through a lot lately. A lot that you fans haven't been privy too. What's your biggest concern with her about? That she lied? No matter whose story you believe, she did it to help her brother. And she's right about how nothing she did made any one of us like her more. In fact, she got kicked out of the dorms more often than the rest of us have ever even argued."

YeongSaeng sighed. "We've all been lied to by someone important to us at some point, haven't we? By a brother or sister, by a lover. And do you know why it hurts? It hurts because we care. It hurts because no matter how mad we get at them, no matter how many mistakes they make, we will _always_ care about them."

Yuri peered sideways at him, confused. He gave her something of a smile, and continued, "Over the past few months, I grew fairly close to a particular dongsaeng. This person was an idiot, always making trouble for himself. But I grew to love him just as much as the rest of my family, and to love him even more for how he helped my best friend in the world become a happier person. My little brother turned out to be a little sister in disguise, but that doesn't make her any less my sibling. Instead, I now have both a little brother and a little sister to look after. And they will be a part of my family _forever_, no matter what you think about them."

At first, Yuri didn't believe what she was hearing. Could YeongSaeng, the best friend of the person she betrayed utterly, actually be on her side? It was incomprehensible.

But then he offered her a hand and began to sing the line of _Beautiful _that should have come after the dance break ended several minutes ago. Up above, Kihun responded by letting the music play past the loop he'd created, playing it at a slightly reduced speed and increasing the volume as he went. Yuri meanwhile, didn't take YeongSaeng's offered hand and he was forced to reach over and grab what he wanted.

Yuri flinched when YeongSaeng gave her hand a squeeze, anticipating divine judgment to strike her down or something equally unpleasant to happen. But nothing did.

The only sensation at all was the draw of the familiar, urging her into the dance she had done a thousand times. Between her own attachment to the music and YeongSaeng's promptings, Yuri was drawn into the routine. She matched his vocals at the octave she naturally sang, feeling the song she loved so much rumble through her lungs.

Donghae meanwhile, was still at a loss.

YeongSaeng's words had struck him almost as forcefully as Yuri's.

Yuri's whisper.

_I never lied to you._

Could he believe that? He wanted to, which surprised him.

Donghae would have presumed that he would want to find every fault in Yuri that he could. He should have wanted to destroy her image in his mind, tear her down from the place of esteem he'd set her in. But he didn't want to, not even a little bit.

As he watched her dance, he thought of all the times she'd said things that didn't quite make sense. He remembered how she'd worked so hard to make things better for her bandmates, and how she'd succeeded. He remembered the last night they had spent together, and how she'd said goodbye . . .

_It hurts because we care . . . because we will _always_ care._

That much seemed to ring true. Despite Yuri's lie, her vanishing without a trace, and all the other horrible messes she had gotten herself into, Donghae was still more concerned about her well being than he was about anything else in the world. She looked thin to him, like she hadn't had a decent meal since she'd left, and that made him worry.

The song came to an end but it immediately began playing again. Donghae could tell by the intro that it was the normal, shorter version. He looked up to the only control panel that he knew the location of and found that he couldn't see inside it at all because of the lights. Despite that, he gave the controller a nod and looked back to Yuri and YeongSaeng who had started the dance all over again, this time with more enthusiasm than the last.

Kihun, though he knew Donghae couldn't see it, nodded back. He'd forgiven Yuri, less grudgingly than YeongSaeng had and he hoped Donghae would as well. Yuri was good for him, over all, and Kihun wanted his bandmate to have the best life he could. He watched as Donghae observed Yuri and YeongSaeng as they sang and danced.

When the bridge came up Donghae joined in, the words fitting his thoughts at the moment perfectly.

_Even when we're apart._

_You still have my heart,_

_Girl, you're all that I see,_

_Oh~ My~ Bae~Bee~_

_You're my Beau~ti~fu~ul!_

His voice made Yuri freeze up, the fear of divine wrath resurfacing.

YeongSaeng's grip on her hand kept her sort of swaying, but it wasn't enough to actually make her move. At least not until YeongSaeng yanked a bit harder and spun her around on the edges of her high heels. As she spun she fought to see Donghae's expression, and she was not comforted by what little she saw.

His face was dark with deep thought; he was going over everything he'd been going over endlessly for yet another time. He wasn't sure, but he thought that just maybe YeongSaeng was right. And just maybe, Yuri had told the truth.

Donghae didn't move as he sang, still considering the options, until a short dance insert came up in the song; at which point he knew YeongSaeng would have to spin Yuri away from him for a moment to fit the choreography. When the two separated, he stepped into the space YeongSaeng had left at Yuri's side.

She flinched when his hand caught her elbow.

She flinched again when he gently tugged her into the position she should have been in to take up her part in the dance that the three of them had gotten so good at performing. Yuri was exceptionally reluctant, but she was eventually convinced to slip back into the dance as the music pressed on.

YeongSaeng though stepped back with a little bow, a wave, and a smile; moving to stand on one of the stage's many hydraulic platforms. He gave a tug on the brim of his hat to say farewell to the audience as well as to give Kihun the go ahead. From his vantage point high above, Kihun was able to send YeongSaeng down with style.

From where he stood, Kihun was also able to observe that mystical thing he'd seen from Yuri and Donghae, while Yuri had still been 'Jay'. It was a conversation of looks and glances, conveyed in absolute silence and absolute privacy despite the mics and audience. It flowed so easily between them, effortless, like it was a habit they had thought they'd broken and had suddenly lapsed back into without taking notice. No one outside of the pair would ever know exactly was what said between them, and few could even guess. Kihun could tell enough to know that Donghae had finally found himself won over, and that Yuri was the one with misgivings.

If he was reading things correctly, she didn't feel that she ought to be forgiven, by anyone and least of all by Donghae. That made him feel all the more like he was right in his acceptance of her as a person. He recognized a few of her pouts, the endearing petulance she'd displayed more than once as Jay. Whatever they were conversing about exactly aside, Donghae was winning.

As the song came to a close, Kihun slowed the beat down a bit and watched as Donghae took Yuri's hand and kissed the back of it. He pulled Yuri closer, humming the last line more than singing, "_No matter what I do, there's no one else but you, you're my beautiful, my~ beau~ti~fu~ul . . ._"

She refused to meet his eyes as she sang and he leaned in for a kiss on her cheek. This made her eyes go wide and they flashed up to Donghae's face, though her head was still turned away from him. He smiled sweetly at her, an expression that was caught by one of the cameramen on the stage and broadcast to the glee of the entire audience. Giddy shouts arose as fangirls practically fainted.

Somewhere between MinYeon's speech and Donghae's first kiss, the opinion of the crowd had been swayed with Donghae's. It meant that when Donghae gingerly turned Yuri's face up towards him and gave her a soft peck on the lips, the audience roared with supporting cheers.

What happened next had every single person in the venue perplexed, except Yuri.

Donghae began to sing and even without the background music, Yuri was able to recognize the solo Donghae had been working on for months now. She smiled.

It took a moment, but YeongSaeng recognized the song as well; rather he guessed what it was and acted accordingly. He snatched up Donghae's iPod and ran to the nearest tech stand. It wasn't the master control center, but it was enough to let him communicate with Kihun. "I'm getting you the music," YeongSaeng said, after relieving a techie of his headset. "Play it from the beginning, at full speed."

"Is it even finished?"

"The track is," YeongSaeng replied. Then thinking about the notebook Donghae had been scribbling all over recently, he added, "I'm not sure about the words, though."

Kihun chuckled softly as YeongSaeng got the iPod connected and he cued the music through the speakers. "I suppose we're going to find out, aren't we?"

As the music opened and the crowd realized what was happening, Donghae showed Yuri the basics of the choreography he'd worked out for the song. It was _very_ basic, seeing as when he'd designed it he hadn't had a clear idea of what the song was saying. But it was a good starting point, and _now _he knew exactly what he wanted the song to be about. It was about falling in love, with the last person you expect, the last person you'd want for yourself, but falling nonetheless; and having it all make sense somehow.

The words flowed naturally from him as he sang and worked though more or less improv choreography with Yuri. It was certainly the best time either one had experienced since the switch back of Jay. And Donghae and Yuri worked together so well, it was as if there'd never been a moment of interruption between them. By the second chorus, Yuri had memorized most of it and was able to join in. By the third chorus, she'd adapted the choreography to better suit the situation, and her heels.

At the end of the song, Donghae caught Yuri's free hand, and pulled her close enough to take the mic from her other. Then he carefully wove her fingers together and slid them over his head with a smile. Keeping the hand with her mic on her waist, and the other on the side of her face, Donghae walked backwards a few steps, pulling Yuri with him.

He pressed his forehead against hers and whispered so quietly that his microphone hardly picked it up, "I missed you."

"I'm sorry," Yuri replied in English, the gravity of her words was easily picked up through Donghae's mic by the audience, even by those that didn't speak the language. The short phrase was weighted with an apology encompassing everything Yuri had ever done to Donghae, from lying and leaving to annoying him on set.

Donghae understood. He leaned down, for his Yuri was much shorter than her brother, and kissed her sweetly. This time Yuri kissed back, the full giddiness of Donghae's forgiveness finally hitting her.

Kihun and YeongSaeng watched them for a moment, letting the crowd surge with screams of half supporting cheers and half jealous tears before they lowered the platform the two superstars were standing on beneath the stage and out of sight of the fans.

Out of sight of the fans perhaps, but _into_ sight of those below.

MinYeon, her arms still caught between those of two burly security guards, cried out in horror. It was a high pitched, irritating wail that no one paid any attention to in any sense of the word. She gave up after a moment of being utterly ignored, seeing as the act had turned her world view completely on its head, and collapsed into the unwillingly supportive arms of the security guards. They were _not_ paid enough to babysit like this, though the drama unfolding before them almost made up for the cost of admission.

A quiet cough, rather than MinYeon's shriek, was what caught the attention of Donghae and Yuri, Yuri more than Donghae. She turned her head out of the kiss, feeling Donghae's lips brush along her cheek for a moment before he too turned to look at the people around them. Yuri was blushing furiously.

Donghae just grinned as he met Jay's chiding gaze. "That's my sister you're kissing, you know," he said, with a smile in his voice to spite the disapproving frown he wore.

"I know," Donghae replied, equally grave and grinning.

Yuri tried to step back, getting some space between them for propriety's sake. Her hands slipped from around Donghae's neck, but his strong arm around her waist refused to let her move away. "I'm not letting you disappear again," he explained in a whisper.

It made Yuri's heart flutter.

"You're going to have to let go of her for a minute," SooHyun said with an air of happy sarcasm. "We've changed the song order a bit, and Sweet's up next. We need the dress," she added at Donghae's confusion.

Donghae leaned back, looking over the gown Yuri was in. It didn't fit her as well as her it had first seemed to, he could tell. She still looked amazing in it, he noted, as he admitted, "I suppose that since it isn't hers, you should be allowed to take it back." He suddenly sobered though, looking over SooHyun's shoulder as he said, "But I think you might want to wait a bit on that."

SooHyun, perplexed as the rest of the group, turned around and paled. Yuri was at a loss as a tall man with a neat suit and a grave face made the entire sub-stage area go quiet and still. President Ahn had arrived. His entourage was dressed in equally impressive suits, though their bodyguard aura was overshadowed by the sheer presence of being that was the JYG President himself.

He started by giving the entire sub-stage a once-over glance that made Yuri shiver against Donghae. He was so focused on the president that he didn't notice.

President Ahn then moved on to MinYeon. The guards holding her up propped her into a vaguely standing position, but she was still being disrespectful in terms of her posture as the president addressed her. He went on for a solid minute, talking to the silence about MinYeon's merit as a JYG artist.

Then he explained how her shortcomings, particularly the recent unprofessionalism, vastly outweighed all of the potential profit she could generate.

Her contract would be terminated at the next available opportunity, in about six months, and until then she would not be permitted to contribute to any JYG production in any way. The great MinYeon was fired.

Then President Ahn turned his attention towards Jay and Yuri, the pair who'd had the least exposure to him of all the people present and who were facing the worst of his fury. The siblings grabbed each other's hands, habit from facing an angry father side by side. This time though, each had another support on their arms. And a family behind them.

"Explain."

Responding to the President's simply spoken word, Yuri patiently went though the story again. As she had onstage, despite her brother's attempts to step in, Yuri arranged the story to take the blame upon herself, as she had onstage.

Donghae wasn't quite sure what of her tale to believe, and vowed to get the truth of it out of her later. He almost smiled at the thought of _later_, that he even _had_ a later to think about in regards to Yuri. The gravity of the situation wasn't lost on him though.

President Ahn listened quietly, thoughtfully, for the duration of Yuri's tale. He remained silent for a moment after she finished, sizing her up and down, and her brother as well. He also noted the attachment of QuaszauR to the two scandalous celebrities. And it was not lost on him just how successful Yuri had been as a singer.

And he needed a solo artist to replace MinYeon in his line-up of artists. She'd made him good money after all, and none of his trainees were ready or independent enough to serve as a way to generate the same income. Yuri certainly didn't have the same image as MinYeon, but that was likely on the plus side of things, as MinYeon's personal traits had offended more than one critic. Besides, Yuri was already a known name, thanks to this huge scandal, and the publicity would have to be spun somehow anyway.

He explained as much to Yuri, literally isolating her in some magical method of exclusive attention, and evaluated her response. Her first question impressed him. "How will it affect Jay?" President Ahn wondered at how much of the blame really belonged to the girl; she'd been so professional under the fans' assault, and MinYeon's, and even his own, and still she was able to remain focused on her goal. It was an admirable quality in this business, one many of his trainees were slowly developing.

"It will harm Jay no more and no less than he would be hurt at your immediate departure," President Ahn replied. "At least in terms of his career."

Yuri's next statement made President Ahn sure that he'd made a wise decision. "Have a proposal drawn up, and I will look it over and get back to you."

She was business savvy, certainly. She wouldn't be bowled over, and it seemed that she could handle herself in tense situations. They were all good things for an artist that was to be promoted in multiple markets around the world to have.

"Jay will have it by Monday," the President promised.

Then he turned his attention to the trio of QuaszauR leaders. "I will see the three of you in my office tomorrow evening," he said simply, a threat of horrid retribution laced within the words. He would not fire them, everyone was sure, but they were going to have to pull a _lot_ of favors to get back in his good graces.

Perhaps fewer though, than their manager and coordinator would be subject to. "And I will see _you two_ in my office bright and early tomorrow morning."

He began to walk off, pausing only to remind them, "You still have a concert to perform, and your public is waiting." With those as his parting words, and a stern smile tossed over his shoulder, President Ahn left QuaszauR to their doing. They were his favorite little project; since he had first thought of getting such a large group together, there had never been a boring moment with them.

In the vacuum the President left behind him, the band was silent for all of five minutes. Then MinYeon sniffled, she was not taking her fall from grace well; and any dignity she'd once had was lost utterly. Even Dara wasn't amused by the sight, and after suffering years of MinYeon's degrading and humiliating comments stemming from back when even _she_ had been a trainee, that realization surprised her.

She looked to the security guards on MinYeon's flanks. "We have a show to put on, we can't have trespassers here distracting us."

The guards nodded and MinYeon was taken away by one of them. The other looked to Yuri, knowing that she wasn't technically supposed to be down there to an even greater extent than MinYeon. Donghae's firm hold on the girl told him otherwise however, and wisely he stepped back.

By this point, Kihun and YeongSaeng had returned and they were terribly curious as to what President Ahn had said about the situation. SooHyun managed to finagle Yuri away from Donghae and the girls took her to change as her brother explained everything, particularly to Kihun, who had missed his earlier run-through.

Though the girls wanted her to slip into one of the other dresses they had used for the show, Yuri felt much more comfortable going back to her jeans and hoodie. She hadn't maintained herself well enough to feel confident in a dress, besides she knew her shoulder would be beginning to bruise soon from where the water bottle had hit her and she preferred that no one noticed it. If they saw the event online, she couldn't do anything to stop them, but she didn't want it on display.

The girls couldn't stick around very long to persuade her otherwise, as they had already left a gap between songs of nearly twenty minutes. Their fans were beginning to get very antsy. When Sweet went up, they calmed down a bit, particularly as the girls gave a short explanation as to the cause of the delay. MinYeon had viciously slandered a member of their family, and she was no longer a member of the JYG family, let alone of QuaszauR's. Her words were not to be believed, and Yuri was soon to become a fellow JYG artist. Or at least so the girls teased, it was still unconfirmed information.

The concert went on. Jay's second solo was well received considering everything that had happened. It wasn't the roar of absolute approval he'd gotten before, but it certainly wasn't the sound of defeat. Donghae didn't go up again. The fans couldn't complain, seeing as they'd witnessed the very first rendition of his new song, but they would have liked to see him again. Yuri didn't go up again either, but the fans weren't particularly concerned by that. They still didn't know what to think about her.

It was remarkable how quickly Yuri fell back into the routine off goofing off with QuaszauR, and how easily they accepted her back into their games. The second half of the concert was much more enjoyable to the band than any group activity had been since Yuri had left; and with both Jay and Yuri fully relaxed as they played around with Jinki, Jaebi, and KyuJeon, the goofiness reached a new level.

YeongSaeng watched them with Donghae, both quieter than they normally would be, but quiet with relief as opposed to stress. "I missed her," Donghae admitted. "I really missed her, even though I wanted her to vanish forever."

"Of course you did," YeongSaeng replied. "Are you mad at her, still?"

"I'm not sure," Donghae replied slowly. "I'm sort of . . . numb, you know? Like the first time, with Jaebi and SeungMi . . . upset, sure. But not really mad."

YeongSaeng clapped him on the shoulder. "That is the most sense you've made in a month," he said, with a smile.

As the show came to a close, the people with passes made their way backstage. Most of the band went up to meet and greet the VIPs, but Jay, Dara, Yuri, and Donghae stayed below. They were called up as HeeJin made a fuss and sent YeongSaeng down to drag them to her. The businessmen and wealthy patrons, that had come back stage with the passes that hadn't been available to the general public for this particular show, were affronted by Yuri's attire. And by HeeJin, one of the most fashionable people in Seoul, who ignored it utterly as she gave Yuri a tight hug.

She was so proud of Yuri for standing up for her brother like that. And seeing her with a genuine smile, like the one she had seen when Donghae had first dragged Yuri into her shop, warmed HeeJin's heart.

"You'd better take good care of this girl," HeeJin told Donghae firmly as she crushed the younger girl to her.

"That's my line," Jay interjected.

He was ignored as HeeJin went on, "And _please_, get her to stop wearing these horrible sweatshirts!"

"I burned the last one," Donghae agreed solemnly. "I don't know where she keeps getting them."

Yuri pushed her way out of HeeJin's knit poncho. "You _burned_ my hoodie? _You're_ the reason I can't find that thing!" Pouting she added, "You have to buy me a new one, it was my _favorite_ hoodie."

"We'll see," Donghae said.

They chatted for a while, but for a shorter time than they normally did. They needed to get home, or at least away from the emotional epicenter, after such an eventful day.

* * *

**A/N: **Kind of an abrupt ending, I know, but tomorrow you get an extra long chapter and the fluffy tie-up of a happy ending!


	18. A Fresh Start

Donghae had his bike, but not Yuri's helmet. He gave her his and had her sit behind him as he drove. It felt good to have her familiar figure behind him. And now that she wasn't hiding who she was anymore, Yuri didn't have to worry about the fact that when Donghae kicked the bike up to speed with an impressive roar of acceleration, she wrapped her arms around his chest so snugly that she could grab her own elbows. Having not been subject to the terrors of the bike in so long, getting back on was all the more frightening, and Donghae didn't take it easy on her. He liked the feel of her against him, though breathing would have been easier if she loosened her grip a bit.

She did eventually let Donghae breathe, but by then the singer was slowing the bike down as their destination came into sight. Yuri didn't recognize it, though she could tell that it was a park in the darkness. She took Donghae's helmet off in a rush to get a better look of the place. She didn't see _too_ many other people around, but the area was far from deserted.

Donghae's laugh caught her attention. "Your hair is much longer now," he mentioned as she tipped her head in confusion. It took a moment for her to figure out what he meant. When she did she flushed pink and turned away from him, combing furiously through the long, tangled, tendrils with her fingers. Her hair was in the horrid condition produced by the combo of the helmet and the wind acting against her hope of good looks.

"Don't worry about it," Donghae said, adding wickedly, "It matches the sweatshirt."

Yuri stuck her tongue out at him and continued her preening. She was so focused on carefully getting the knots out of her extensions that she didn't notice as Donghae disappeared. She noticed a moment later though, suddenly feeling very alone. "Donghae-hyungnim?" she called into the dark.

"Over here," he called back with a chuckle. Yuri hadn't even noticed the honorific she'd used. "Come on, you'll miss it."

"Miss what?" Yuri asked, carefully making her way through the dark at Donghae's urgings. He refused to answer her question as he coaxed her though the shadows.

Then suddenly he appeared at her side, making her jump. She hit his shoulder. "No fair, I don't know my way around here like you do!"

"I know," Donghae said with a grin. "Here."

He proffered up a cone of ice-cream. "He was out of chocolate, but I know you like chocolate chip."

"Where did you . . . ?"

"I know my way around here," Donghae said with a shrug and a casual lick of his own cone. "Come on, it's just over here."

"What?" Yuri asked, her curiosity bubbling up to nearly unbearable levels.

Having mastered the reveal early on in life, Donghae let the suspense build just long enough before he turned Yuri and guided her around the corner. "This."

Yuri caught sight of Banpo Bridge just as the show began. Colorful lights and intricate weavings of water made for a fantastic display just across the river Han. Yuri was awestruck. Donghae too was made to pause.

After a moment though, he came to his senses enough to lead Yuri over to a park bench. Together they watched the show and ate their ice cream in comfortable silence.

Then as the lights faded and the streams of water dwindled, Yuri swallowed the last bite of her ice cream cone, stared out across the river at the city lights, and said, "I still haven't told you everything. Not the way it really happened at least."

"I know."

"Do you want me to?"

"No," Donghae replied, surprising even himself. "I don't think the details really matter for the most part. Just in a few things."

Worried a bit, Yuri kept her eyes on the water. "Like what?"

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Yuri had expected this question, it was the inevitable one.

"At first it was because there was actually a reason to keep the secret," Yuri said. "Even when Dara and Jaebi and SeungMi figured it out, it was still pretty much a secret."

Donghae didn't say anything when she paused, letting her form her thoughts into something articulate. "And even once the other girls learned, it was still because of the secret part of the secret, I wanted to keep everyone from the stress of it. It wasn't until the end that I actively didn't tell _you_. I . . . I knew you'd be disappointed in me, and I didn't think I could take that."

When she'd fallen silent for along moment, Donghae said quietly, "You didn't trust me to hear you out?" He was hurt by the statement. At that point, Donghae probably would have trusted her with his life, with all his secrets, with every skeleton in his closet. That she didn't even believe in him enough to let her speak up brought back some of the pain he'd been feeling over the past few weeks.

"It wasn't that, it was never that," Yuri said quietly, looking to Donghae with serious eyes as she tried to reassure him. "It was just that I'd already broken up one family, and having to face the disappointment from someone _else_ I cared about and ended up hurting. . . I just couldn't do it . . . I'm sorry."

"Your family . . . ?"

"That story I told you about my family wasn't a lie, and it didn't really happen that way to Jay," Yuri explained. "Jay had gotten in trouble again for something. I tried to get him off the hook and ended up giving my mother and father _more_ to fight about. The vacation was their last effort to stay together. It failed. My dad walked out on my birthday because of me too. I'd been whining at him all week about the cake, I _loved_ cake and wanted to have two at the party. He just couldn't take it anymore."

Yuri had to look away now, she'd never confessed this to anyone, not even a diary.

"It was my fault, all of it. Jay never blamed me, but I'm sure he wanted to. He was suddenly saddled with a home-wrecking baby sister to take care of and no one to help him do it." After a pause she continued, "It's one of the reasons he ran off to be a singer, to get away from the responsibility. The moment I got a job and could support myself without him, he left. I did little less to you, and knowingly so. Even if you had heard me out, I don't think I could have lived with myself."

"And now?"

"I don't know. It still doesn't feel like I've actually told you, I was just protecting Jay again . . . so it feels . . . justified? I don't know. This is the first time I've stopped to think about it since the stage," Yuri admitted.

"Me too," Donghae replied. He'd managed to convince her that he didn't hate her on stage, that he'd forgiven her. He'd convinced himself that he truly loved her and that nothing could change his feelings. But since then, he hadn't really thought about what her thing with Jay had done to their relationship.

"I am mad at you, and disappointed in you," he said, causing her to close her eyes. She didn't cry, as she'd expected nothing less. What Donghae said next, however, made her look hard at him, searchingly. "And regardless, I love you."

Yuri wasn't sure, despite his kisses on stage. An act in the rush of adrenalin and emotion was something entirely different than a sober proclamation, particularly in the face of shortcomings rather than an admirable defense of family.

"I haven't told you everything either," Donghae went on. "On the night before you left, I broke up with MinYeon because I realized that I was in love with you. A few weeks later, Z.J. helped me figure out that I didn't know who I was in love with . . . I _hated _you for lying. Or, I thought I did. Really, I hated you for leaving; hated that you could."

This time it was Yuri that held her quiet as she waited for Donghae to collect his thoughts. Seeing him unsure of what he wanted to say was new for her, and despite the fact that his words cut her to the bone, she was intensely curious as to what he was thinking about. _Being_ unsure of what he wanted to say was something new for Donghae, and it took him longer to articulate his thoughts than it had Yuri.

"That you could just walk away from everything like nothing had happened . . . Like nothing that _had_ happened had meant anything," he said. His hand moved to his pocket and a thin silver chain caught the lights of the city as it trailed from his fist when it came away from the cache. "That hurt more than any lie you could have told."

He held the necklace up so that she could see what it was and heard her quiet gasp. Donghae couldn't look at her as he asked, "Why did you leave it?"

Their conversation on the stage had cleared the water between them as people, had presented the option of being a couple, and displayed his feelings on the matter. It had shown Yuri's as well, but it hadn't quite cleared everything about the state of their mutual regard. Donghae was still harboring the doubts that had made Yuri's disappearance so unbearable in the first place.

"I couldn't not," Yuri whispered. "I'd worn it so often . . . if I'd stopped, the secret would have been out in an instant . . . I can't tell you how hard it was to let Jay have it."

"Really?" Donghae's voice was drawn with yearning and disbelief.

Yuri replied with a girlish giddiness in her heart that turned the gravity in her voice into a neutral calm. "I first got a crush on you the first time you sang _Beautiful_, when Jay should have debuted . . . I'm not sure when I fell in love, when it changed from crush to whatever it is now, but by the time I first got kicked out of the dorms, you were the most important person in my world, aside from Jay. I didn't take that necklace off for even a second until I left my brother at the dorms."

Donghae stayed silent, unsure of what he wanted to say. Yuri figured out fairly easily what he'd been thinking for the past few weeks. "You can think me cold and callous; you can think I'm a terrible person. You're more than justified to hate me. But if you for one second think that I'm going to let you pretend that I don't care about you, you are sorely mistaken," she said seriously, focused intently on his face as the city lights reflecting off the river caused colorful moving shadows along its contours.

Holding a silence only for the space of taking a deep breath, Yuri placed on hand on the side of Donghae's face, turning it towards her. She was determined that he believed her in this, if nothing else. "Even Jay, whose well-being is the most important thing of all to me, has never once been able to make me question the worth of doing the right thing. But I was so scared of making you hate me that I actually decided to maintain a lie, even when I knew that none of the consequences the secret had been initially kept for applied. Not telling you was the easy way out, and one of the hardest things I've ever done."

"Really? The point of acting more effectively than anyone ever has to make me hate you was to _keep_ me from hating you?" Donghae said, with something of chagrined humor. The irony would probably end up seeming hilarious in the next few years, and this fact was not lost on him at all.

It would either be hilarious, or tragic; depending on how this night turned out.

Yuri answered the question of how things would go, taking a leap of faith that she never would have dared for anyone less important than the man she was in love with, in a single, calmly spoken phrase, "Hwan Donghae, Saranghae."

Having said what she'd hardly even admitted fully to herself, Yuri kept her hand on Donghae's cheek, light and unrestraining, and pressed her lips to his just firmly enough to hide the fact that they were quivering with anxiety.

Donghae only processed what was happening for half a second, marveling in the notion of his shy little dongsaeng's temerity, before he responded by pulling her into a tight hug and deepening the kiss. At some point, the Banpo Bridge had sparked to life again, the dazzling lights and intricate streams of water replaying the show they had seen earlier. This time, the pair only caught the end of it, curling together on the park bench. Yuri was using Donghae's shoulder as a pillow and he had tucked her under his arm as he had the night before he'd realized just how in love with her he was.

They were perfectly comfortable.

Neither of them knew how long they sat that way, staring out over the river and discussing the crazier points of Yuri's time as Jay. Now that Donghae had been assured of Yuri's regard, he could see it more easily in the interactions they'd had during that time. And he could laugh openly at her for all the little failings he'd never mentioned when he'd been worried about harming Jay's self-esteem. And _she _could laugh at him for all the ridiculous stunts he'd pulled to avoid harming Jay's self –esteem, and some of what he'd done for SeungMi as well.

By the time they got back to the dorm, it was later than they had ever voluntarily stayed out before. Donghae had stayed out longer a few times with MinYeon, but then he always returned home with a horrific headache. Tonight there was nothing but a happy buzz to bother his thoughts.

In the parking garage, Donghae collected the helmet he'd thrown; the one that belonged to Yuri. It was scratched a bit on one side, but the black visor was fine and there weren't any real chips in the sleek silver plastic. Donghae was almost hesitant to explain why it had made its way into the far corner of QuaszauR's allotted space. Yuri touched the silver heart hanging at her throat as he explained, aware that it had a similar story.

The dents and scratches weren't things Yuri blamed Donghae for, she didn't blame herself either. Rather than placing blame or regretting, Yuri chose to see them as reminders; that Donghae cared enough about to lash out like that, and that lying to protect either of them never would.

Upstairs, they tiptoed into the front room of the dorm, only to be surprised by the fact that not one of QuaszauR's members had gone to bed. They did all have pajamas on, but aside from that, it could have been the middle of the afternoon. With Marmy on her stomach, Dara was lying on her back over the counter between the kitchen and the common room with SeungMi and MinJi. They were using their feet to annoy Kihun and SooHyun as the pair buzzed about creating some sort of chocolate concoction. JiEun was watching from the doorway. Behind her, Chansung, Jinki, Jaebi, and JongHyun were playing with a hacky-sack. They weren't very coordinated about it and the hall with the bedrooms was the only place in the dorm without something breakable in it, meaning it was the only area SooHyun wouldn't kill them for playing in.

YeongSaeng and KyuJeon were on the computer, watching QuaszauR forums and message boards for the fan reaction to everything that had happened. They were even trolling a bit with their puppet accounts to make sure that MinYeon and the anonymous fan with the water bottle were officially enemies of their fan-base. They were.

Everyone else was on the couch, yelling at the TV and shoving each other as they battled it out in some videogame. The dorm was so full of activity when Yuri and Donghae made their careful way inside, that no one noticed their arrival for nearly a minute of their dumbfounded staring.

Then Marmy gave a happy meow, and Dara spotted the couple at the door.

"Finally!" she shouted, shoving Marmy roughly into SeungMi's arms as she leapt off the counter and tumbled in sock-clad feet along the smoothe floor to meet her friends. "I was beginning to think you guys were going to stay out _all_ freaking night!"

Dara immediately grabbed Yuri's hands and towed her off, not letting either of the home-comers get a word in. Marmy mewed again as Yuri was dragged past, and SeungMi used his paw to wave, a huge smile on her pretty face.

Chatting away about a million different subjects, not one of which Yuri caught, Dara dragged her friend to her room and pushed her onto the bed. She then went to her closet and pulled out three hangers set with cute nighttime ensembles. "I think you should wear something cute, but not as cute as SeungMi's nightgown. Something girly, but awesome too. What do you think of these?"

"The middle one looks nice," Yuri replied, perplexed.

It was pink and blue and frilly and since Yuri hadn't the faintest idea of what Dara was talking about it seemed just as good as any of the others. Dara grinned at her choice. Then there was another flurry of movement and fabric and Yuri was being shoved into the bathroom just outside the door of Dara's bedroom, half undressed already with the pajamas clutched in her arms. Before Dara shut the door and gave her privacy, she said, "Give your hair a good conditioning, I want to braid it!"

Yuri stared at the wood of the shut door, pondering what to do, until she began to shiver from the fact that Dara had wrestled her out of her hoodie and t-shirt. Then she decided she had nothing to lose and needed a shower anyway and, folding the pajamas neatly and placing the rest of her clothes beside them on the counter, she stepped into the warm water.

Out in the common room, just as Yuri was starting to really sink into the bliss of taking a hot shower after so long of neglecting herself, Donghae was emerging from his own shower. He'd gone straight to his room and then immediately to the bathroom for purpose of avoiding his bandmates. Unfortunately, he'd never been one to linger in the shower and he was soon subject to the curious questions of his friends. Jay teamed up with Dara to lead the interrogation, but everyone stopped what they were doing to contribute and listen in.

After the initial questioning, the basic 'where did you go?', 'what did you do?', 'is everything completely official now?' kind of thing, Jay transitioned into fraternal over-protectiveness. "You stayed out awfully late with her," he mentioned. "We were beginning to think you weren't coming back tonight."

The minds of the members were on MinYeon, and the times Donghae had stayed over with her rather than coming home.

"I didn't even know she was a girl until last month," Donghae said, the seriousness of Jay's worries settling heavily on his shoulders despite his lighthearted tone.

Jay arched an eyebrow and looked to YeongSaeng with a grin. "And you weren't in love with her at all before that? A guy like you, healthy and strong and whatnot, didn't think of her that way at _all_?"

Donghae had to defend that his motives were pure at heart for another few minutes before Yuri came storming out into the common room. "Oppa! Will you give it a rest? I can take care of myself!"

She placed her hands firmly on her hips and huffed as everyone in the dorm started at her. Their attention wasn't due to her proclamation. The cute pajamas Dara had dumped her with were of a style none of the people present had seen Yuri wear before. Dara giggled.

Yuri looked like she was dressed in an explosion of lace and cotton candy. The tank-top had lacey not-quite sleeves with cute little bows at the cuffs. The pants puffed out like a 1920's bathing suit, with lacey cuffs flaring out just above her knees. It wasn't a style Yuri would have chosen for herself, but she sort of liked it now that she was wearing it. It fit her personality in a weird, unexpected way.

She was content to stare her brother down indefinitely, but then she heard the beep of a camera behind her and spun to face a chipper SooHyun. "You look adorable!" she proclaimed. "Now come over here and let me braid your hair!"

"Nope, I already called that!" Dara shouted, latching on to Yuri's arm and hauling her over to the little niche in the common room that afforded the best view of the television. The couch had been pushed back, something Yuri hadn't noticed on her way inside, and in its place were dozens of blankets and pillows. SeungMi was putting in a movie.

As Dara wrestled her into a place where she could see the movie clearly and her hair could be easily accessed, Yuri asked, "What's all this?"

"A pajama party!" MinJi chirped, plopping down on the pile of softness next to Yuri with a grin. "We haven't been able to spend any real girl time with you, so we thought we should do it tonight."

SooHyun added, "We can't have practice tomorrow anyway, since our trainers are busy with their baby, our coordinators are busy with the president, and halfway through we leaders will have to leave any way to go see the big guy; so it's the perfect time!"

"Umm, okay," Yuri replied, unsure. However, the way Dara was combing though her hair with strong and delicate fingers felt so amazing that she didn't really care that she still felt like she'd missed something.

Throughout the movie, they chatted more than watched, giggling furiously every few seconds in the general way that occurs because sleepovers make everything seem a hundred times funnier than usual. Yuri's newly long hair was braided around in a complicated arrangement that seemed to magically stay up on its own, as Dara had only used one bobby pin to stick it all into place and somehow it was able to survive the gentle rough-housing it was subject to. Nails were polished, massive amounts of sweets were consumed, and everyone had their hair done at least once.

By the time the movie was over, the girls were more hyper than ever and videogames were hauled out. At some point, Dara headed to the kitchen to get more snacks and discovered that the girls hadn't been the only ones enjoying the night. YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, Jay, Donghae, Jaebi, Jinki, Kihun, and Chansung were up as well. In fact YoungJae and JongHyun had been up until about five minutes before Dara discovered that the guys were camped out in the kitchen.

They'd been chatting away themselves, and rough-housing, and goofing-off, and playing video games on Z.J.'s borrowed laptop, and snacking; and most entertainingly, they had been listening to the seemingly random giggles of the girls. Dara found it most amusing. But she immediately ordered them all to go to bed, this wasn't their party to be a part of; besides, they'd eaten most of the snack foods in the dorm.

Kihun volunteered to cook something that was snackable for the girls as an apology. He however declared that to make enough he would need help. Dara just rolled her eyes and snatched the last of the shrimp-flavored crackers from Jay's hands and stalked back to the common room.

She was followed by Jaebi, KyuJeon, and Jinki, who promptly found places to sit where they could yell at the screen in support on one of their bandmates as the little CG characters they were controlling tried to smash each other to pieces.

Yuri got up and stretched. Then she wandered over to the kitchen, wondering both why so many of the guys had stayed up this late, and also what kind of food was being made to produce the strange smell wafting out to the common room. The others seemed to recognize it and paid it no mind, but Yuri wanted to know if it had any ingredients she wouldn't want to stomach _before_ she ate it.

Sitting by YeongSaeng at the breakfast bar, Yuri tried to figure out what all was going into this middle of the night snack. She was side-tracked when she noticed YeongSaeng playing absent mindedly with the ring KyuJeon had given him. "How are things going for you two?" Yuri asked. She'd gotten the stories of what had happened with JaeMi and JiSung since she'd left, but KyuSaeng was still an unknown to her.

"Same old, same old," YeongSaeng said with a grin.

Yuri didn't return the feeling. "You _still_ haven't told him anything?" she asked flatly.

His expression was enough of a tell for her and she banged her fist down on the counter, shouting, "That's it! I quit! I don't care anymore, you two crazies aren't going to do anything on your own, so it ends here!"

"What?" YeongSaeng asked, surprised and perplexed. The others in the kitchen and a few of those in the common room shared his confusion.

"You're telling him, _now_," Yuri declared. She stood up abruptly and grabbed onto YeongSaeng's ear before he knew what was happening. She dragged him, spluttering pained protests the entire way, to the dormitory door, whipped it open, shoved him outside, and slammed it shut and locked it.

Then she marched over to where KyuJeon was now staring fearfully at his bandmates in the common room and repeated the process. Once she'd man-handled them both outside, she stood between them with her back against the door, saying in her best patronizing voice, "Now, isn't there something you'd like to say to each other?"

She felt like a grade school teacher must when telling two small children to apologize and play nice. She was rewarded just as one would be, with shy mumbles and a show of apparently fascinating floor tiles.

With a sigh, Yuri whapped them both on the back of the head.

"Hey!" they shouted in unison.

Yuri was not moved. She crossed her arms as they rubbed the backs of their heads, prompting, "Well?"

When they still held their tongues, Yuri uncrossed her arms threateningly. "Do I have to hit you again?"

The threat had no effect on either singer and Yuri sighed heavily. "Fine, I'll do it," she said, adding with dramatic gestures of introduction, "KyuJeon, this is YeongSaeng, he loves you. YeongSaeng, meet KyuJeon, he loves you too. Get it? You're both gay, you both like each other, and you're both idiots. I'm going inside."

With that, Yuri left the pair standing on the landing outside the QuaszauR dorms and waltzed triumphantly inside. The occupants had obviously heard everything, based on the fact that they were all wearing huge grins when she came in. Donghae met her with a round of applause from the kitchen. She gave a mock bow and headed over to the breakfast bar as she heard Jaebi and SeungMi explaining things to Jinki, he was a little slow when it came to things like this.

As she settled down back at the breakfast bar, Donghae appeared behind her, wrapping her in his arms and pressing his face into the bits of hair that had escaped Dara's braid and were hanging at her neck. "They're going to be terribly miffed at you," he whispered laughingly.

Yuri shrugged as best she could in his embrace, pretending to be blasé in the face of his breathless proximity. "KyuJeon's kicked me out of the dorm before. It wasn't so bad, I've faced worse."

Together, they watched the creation of . . . something Yuri couldn't identify. It was tasty though, she discovered, taking a bite as she transported it over to the common room.

Eventually, YeongSaeng and KyuJeon came back inside.

No one said anything, but Yuri couldn't resist a triumphant grin when she saw that they kept their fingers laced the rest of the night.

She wasn't sure what time it was when she fell asleep, but she was sure that if she hadn't dozed off when she did she would have been able to see the sunrise.

In the morning, because eleven am was still _technically_ morning , Yuri carefully untangled herself from Donghae and Marmy and stepped gingerly over the sleeping forms of her other friends. The cat was not so careful as he followed after his favorite person on a jaunt through the dorm, but somehow no one was forced out of their dreams.

Yuri got dressed, in clothes that flattered her figure for the first time in a while, and headed out to the café. Her Ajussi wasn't there, but very few people were. Even so, it was the first time throwing on a hoodie on top of what she was wearing and pairing it with shades and a hat had ever been necessary.

The limited clientele were all abuzz about what had happened at the concert last night and her name, her real name as opposed to Jay's, was being thrown around more often than Yuri would have thought possible. She didn't linger in the café as she normally did, as she was actually worried about being recognized.

Sweet met her at the door of the dorms.

"We were just coming to get you!" Dara said cheerfully, eyeing Yuri's sweatshirt and hoping that she had worn something nice underneath it.

SeungMi supplied, "Since the boys ruined our sleepover, we're taking you out shopping! YoungJae's threatening them with doing the laundry all alone for a month to get them to stay put this time."

"Really?"

"Yup! So let's go!" SooHyun chirped excitedly. Shopping was her favorite pastime.

Meanwhile, back in the dorms, a disgruntled and chilly Donghae woke to find himself hugging not his precious Yuri, but the pillow she had been using. For half a second he thought it had all been a dream, that'd he'd just woken up after a long week of music video shooting. The panic that flamed to life lasted only as long as it took for him to try to sit up and find Marmy on his chest.

He shoved the cat away and stretched, trying to send his heart-rate down to an acceptable level as he stood. Then he kicked YeongSaeng awake, which also jostled KyuJeon into awareness. The two grumbled, Yuri would have noted that it was cutely in sync, as Donghae grumbled, "Where did you two idiots take her now?"

"What?" they slurred groggily.

"You guys took her out in the mornings before, so where is she now?"

YeongSaeng threw his pillow, actually it had come from MinJi's bed initially, at his best friend and curled back around KyuJeon, trying to get back to sleep as he said, "You're crazy. We haven't done anything."

About to kick the pair again, Donghae noticed that _none_ of the girls were still in the tangle of bandmates. He wasn't the only one who would have to wake up alone this morning. The girls were all gone without a trace.

Dara was responsible, Donghae was sure.

His hand went to his pocket, or where his pocket would have been, were he actually wearing real pants. The pajama bottoms were warm and comfortable, and did not contain his cell phone. Storming to his room he tore the place up searching through the dozen pairs of black jeans, that just _had _to look exactly the same, that he hadn't put away since he'd stopped caring about anything except how mad he was with Jay and Yuri. "Aish! There you are!" he exclaimed when the small rectangle of black plastic fell to the white carpeting of his bedroom floor.

His first instinct was to call Yuri, he'd bought her a phone after all.

Actually, he'd bought 'Jay' a phone. And Jay was the one who still had it.

And he had sweatpants from Yuri's university on, and _they_ had pockets. The sudden urgent vibration woke him to discover with the same crestfallen bite of realization that the only thing in his arms was a pillow. "What the hell do you want, Donghae?" he asked, answering his phone out of sheer habit rather than conscious decision. He was nowhere near conscious enough for a conscious decision.

"Sorry," Donghae said, hanging up.

Next he called Dara, and thankfully he reached her, "Hey there, sleepy head! What can I do for my almost-brother-in-law?"

"Where's Yuri?"

"With us, safe and sound," Dara replied. "We left a note, you know. Yuri insisted, we were already all the way outside and she wouldn't leave till we went back and put a note on the door."

"Where are you?"

Dara laughed. "Sorry, I'm not at liberty to discuss that. You'll just have to wallow."

"Dara!"

"Check the note," she said with a giggle, and then she hung up.

Frustrated, Donghae almost called back. Instead, he got dressed, shoved his phone in his pocket and went to see if this note actually existed. It did, but it didn't give Donghae news he wanted to have.

_Hiya Donghae! We're kidnapping Yuri because you ruined our sleepover! You can't come! We've told YoungJae not to let you leave, he's in the office by the way, if you want to try and get him to tell you where we're going. He knows, but he won't tell you! Kekeke ^.^ - QuaszauR Sweet_

Donghae grumbled, but he decided to take Sweet up on their challenge. He went over to where he knew YoungJae would be slaving over paper work and tried to work his magic. Donghae had always been able to get YoungJae to tell him whatever he wanted. Leader was a big softie underneath it all, and Donghae knew how to push all his buttons.

"Shopping."

YoungJae said it the moment Donghae walked in the door, he didn't even look up from whatever it was he was working on.

"Excuse me?"

"SooHyun took Yuri and the girls shopping. That's all I know, honestly," YoungJae said, exactly as aware of his inability to hide information from Donghae as the would-be-interrogator was, and equally aware that he hadn't the time for it on this particular morning. "Have fun trying to track them down, be back before dark; SooHyun has something planned."

Donghae grumbled, but relented and went down to the garage where his bike was parked. He was at HeeJin's in ten minutes.

"You missed them," HeeJin said the moment he walked in.

Donghae sighed, this little chase was beginning to get very bothersome. "Do you know where they went?"

"They said something about a blonde guy, and maybe lunch with a Chinese man and a dictator . . . But all I really know is that if they're still out shopping, they'll be avoiding their usual haunts," HeeJin replied. "They know you're out looking for them."

"Isn't that just peachy?" Donghae replied sarcastically.

HeeJin laughed. "My suggestion would be to just go home and wait it out. Play those stupid video games with YeongSaeng and KyuJeon."

Donghae sighed, again.

Before he left, he shared a cup of tea with HeeJin, as she would not be convinced to go get coffee. "Did SooHyun happen to mention what she and Dara are planning?"

"Well, they didn't tell _Yuri_," HeeJin said as her reply.

She knew it would rile Donghae. "They're all in on it? Oh, come on, tell me!"

"Nope, not gonna happen," HeeJin said with a grin. "Sorry, Hae-ya."

Donghae grumbled and tried for nearly an hour to get her to reveal her knowledge. Seeing as all the tricks he was using, he had learned from her . . . it didn't go successfully. He also tried a few that Yuri'd shown him, but those worked better at getting couples together than getting an individual to reveal a secret.

"Go home, Donghae," HeeJin said sweetly after a while. "And just relax."

Reluctantly, Donghae did so. He played some sort of racing game with YeongSaeng, KyuJeon, and Jay; the slow passing of the hours irritated him, but he didn't let it show, much. Jay poked a bit of fun at him for it, and the KyuSaeng pair did as well; but just a bit, other than that Donghae was allowed to be frustrated in peace.

By the time the sun began to sink, turning the entire city golden with its fading glow, SooHyun, JongHyun, and YoungJae made their way home. They were much worse for wear. President Ahn was _furious_ with them, but as they were the leaders of his most successful money-making scheme, their jobs were safe. Even SooHyun's position as co-leader was unscathed, though she would now be expected to perform a significant number of additional responsibilities.

Though she was by far the one of the three in the most trouble, she was the one in the best mood. She was downright chipper as she waltzed around the dormitory with a suspiciously wrapped box in her hands. The packaging was from HeeJin's shop, Donghae would have known it anywhere. And her smile was just that of the conspiring shopkeeper as well. Donghae tried his best to not be noticed.

YeongSaeng pointed him out right away, with KyuJeon keeping him from running away. SooHyun beamed at the pair and dragged Donghae over to the bathroom with an easy show of force Donghae would never have expected from her. "Get yourself cleaned up, I'm putting this on your bed. If you're not wearing it and picture perfect in an hour, Yuri's eating with the girls."

Donghae smiled ruefully. SooHyun was setting him up on a date with Yuri; that much, he'd guessed long ago. But what exactly would be involved . . . SooHyun could be terribly creative when she put her mind to it. Then again, how bad could it be?

Meanwhile, Yuri was having a blast. Even when SooHyun had to leave suddenly to make her meeting with the President, the others kept the cheer at the highest level it had maintained in a long while.

Yuri was hardly master of her own wardrobe. Throughout the day Yuri'd been coaxed into outfit after outfit, particularly dresses; and each one had been fancier and more luxurious than the last. By the time evening had set in, Yuri felt like she was ready for the prom. Walking down the street in the prettiest dress she'd ever worn, asymmetric, sky blue, and perfectly suited to her shape, with two popstars on each arm, Yuri felt like some sort of movie star.

The impression had been even more deep seated in her mind for the fact that just after SooHyun had left their ranks, the five remaining girls had lunch with three real superstars; true greats. However, as one of them supposedly didn't exist anymore, one wasn't really supposed to be in Korea at all, and the third was _definitely_ not supposed to be talking to either of them, the lunch would be an unspoken of happy memory for the rest of the foreseeable future. Yuri'd gotten a few pictures though.

"We should probably head home soon," Yuri mentioned reluctantly as the drips of yellow light slipping along the glass around them began to turn first to pink and then to a deep purple.

The others agreed, but before they'd made much progress in heading back, Dara exclaimed, "Oh! That's MinWoo oppa's hotel! We should go say hi, seeing as we hardly ever come to this side of town."

SeungMi agreed vehemently, and MinJi and JiEun were no less enthusiastic; Yuri was always up for meeting someone else in the magical world her popstar friends lived in, so no protests were raised from anyone on the short trip across the street.

She didn't suspect a thing.

Back at the dorms, Donghae had lingered in the shower for the first time he could recall, taking care in every detail. Mostly, it was to waste time. From SooHyun's usual style of arranging things, he could guess that he wouldn't be able to met up with Yuri until it actually got dark, and he wasn't sure how long he would want to hang around propped up in whatever ridiculous get-up the girl had set out for him.

Slipping back to his room, Donghae was met with surprise.

Inside the box wasn't some preposterous costume, like the giant teddy bear suit she'd gotten him into for SeungMi's birthday a few years ago. Instead was one of the nicest three-piece suits he'd ever seen, pale tans and off-whites, tailored to perfection. How HeeJin had gotten it to fit him so exactly without any sort of fitting was one of the many mysteries of her craft. She'd even included a hat to match.

The only source of real color in the ensemble was the tie and pocket square, which were each a pale blue satin.

What it meant in terms of the evening teased Donghae more than not knowing anything. Yuri would be wearing a dress, presumably a blue one.

He walked out into the common room with almost insufferable a smile as SooHyun was wearing. The others gave wolf whistles and the like at his arrival. "Don't you look nice," YeongSaeng mentioned with an arched eyebrow as he handed over his BMW's keys to his best friend.

SooHyun sniffed. "Not as good as Yuri does."

"And where _is_ she?"

She clucked disapprovingly. "You can't know yet, just go to the address in the GPS and she'll be there soon enough."

The GPS, yelling at him in a horrifically impossible to understand accent of English that was labeled 'SnoopDogg', eventually brought him to a five-star hotel in the very center of Seoul. It was a very familiar hotel. It was MinWoo's hotel, the very first of the grand chain.

The bartender businessman didn't meet him at the door, but as the valet took YeongSaeng's car off his hands Donghae spotted his Sunbae loitering about in the center of his lobby. MinWoo grinned when he saw Donghae come inside.

"Don't you look spiffy?"

"Well, this is a five-star establishment," Donghae replied with a shrug. "I couldn't just come in sweats."

"Like you ever just wear sweats," MinWoo countered, slinging an arm around his dongsaeng and resisting the strong urge to ruin his hair. He even managed to hold himself from the temptation that was stealing Donghae's hat. "Come on, I bet you're wondering what those crazy things we call girls have gotten you into."

MinWoo led Donghae through the main lobby and took him to one of the highest floors via the nearest elevator. Not five minutes later, the girls of Sweet, sans leader, were coaxing Yuri though the significantly less ornate back lobby and into another elevator. They took her up to the highest floor, a level with nothing on it but a piano, a dance floor and a 360 view of the brightest city on earth.

Yuri was absolutely stunned by the sight and gravitated towards the windows the moment the elevator doors opened. It was the single most amazing cityscape she'd ever seen. Living in this city for the rest of her life not only seemed like a good option at this moment, it seemed like the only one she could bear to live with at all.

When she managed to catch her breath she looked around to ask Dara how on earth something so breathtaking could possibly exist.

But Dara wasn't anywhere in the room. For that matter, neither was MinJi, JiEun, or SeungMi. Instead, Yuri caught sight of a tall young man in a tailored black suit climbing the stairs. He was quite handsome, and looked to be about HeeJin unnie's age. Yuri had to smile at the suave air he carried, correctly thinking that Donghae had learned more than a few life lessons from him.

"MinWoo-ssi?" she guessed.

He grinned, and said with a throaty chuckle, "Little mind reader, HeeJin wasn't lying when she said you were a quick one. Where's Dara?"

"I don't know."

"_She_ was never a patient one," MinWoo said with a sigh. "I'll go look for her, since she probably went looking for me already."

MinWoo gave her a bow, saying, "It was nice to meet you, Yuri. I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot more of each other in the future." With that he disappeared back down the stairs, as if he had never been there at all.

Yuri bowed her head in response and stared after him. Then she turned back to the view laid out before her. Strangely, she found that she couldn't concentrate on the spread of lights weaving intricate patterns out in the blackness below her.

Looking back towards the stairs, Yuri noted how MinWoo had said that he was going to go look for Dara. He'd never said that she ought to just wait for him to come back.

Meanwhile, Donghae was leaning up against the polished counter of a mini bar. It was in one of MinWoo's reception rooms, the huge expanses of space that rarely contained more than a few tables, space for dancing, a grand old piano, and an amazing view. Donghae had to grin at the setting, Yuri would love it. Of course, seeing as his friend had left him completely alone in the room to randomly go do something, Donghae was left trying to reign in his frustration, and anticipation.

When he saw MinWoo coming down a staircase he was moderately sure the man hadn't gone up, Donghae called, "It's about time you got back here! Where have you been?"

"Here and there, running a hotel is serious work you know," he said mysteriously.

"You should tell HeeJin that."

"I did," MinWoo said proudly. "My girlfriend is going to help me run this crazy chain in her free time starting next week."

Donghae just grinned in response, a smugness in his attitude that would have been unmistakable a mile out.

Completely unphased, MinWoo adopted his own grin. One that was perhaps even more smug and self-satisfied than Donghae's. "That Yuri of yours is a pretty little thing, a bit less than observant, but certainly a charmer."

Attitude completely gone, Donghae asked, "Where is she?"

"I would say 'lost', but I think that might be too plausible to joke about," MinWoo replied, reveling in his dongsaeng's discomfort. It was fun to watch him squirm, so long as there was nothing really wrong.

"Is she –"

"Actually, I think she's right there," MinWoo interrupted, gesturing to the staircase.

Donghae looked to where his Sunbae was pointing, a biting reply on his tongue. He froze, completely forgetting what he was going to say, or that he'd intended to reply at all, when he caught sight of a perplexed Yuri on the stairs.

She was hoping she'd made the right choice in passing up the doors that led off the staircase in at least three places. Somehow it just didn't seem like Dara would look for someone like MinWoo in the staff areas like the laundry room, so she'd stuck to the main staircase as it brought her down into another ballroom of some sort.

Being that Yuri's heels were staggeringly high, and amazingly thin, she'd had to watch her every step very carefully as she descended, allowing for only the most cursory glance around the room in her search for Dara or MinWoo. Donghae on the other hand, was utterly free to drink in the sight. Knowing the pretty face of his most important person belonged to a girl and really _seeing_ her as one were two entirely different things.

"You've got ten minutes," MinWoo whispered in Donghae's ear. "After that I'm bringing out the salad and bread sticks." Then he slipped away into the kitchen area behind the ballroom; Donghae didn't so much as blink at his leaving.

For her part, Yuri was glad she'd been forced to take and keep a careful hold of the railing on the stairway when she reached the bottom. Her eyes found Donghae the moment she looked up for more than a general assessment of the room. He was leaning up against the counter of a mini-bar, perfectly at ease and wearing that signature smile that had made Yuri's knees go weak and her heart go still from the very first time she'd seen him onstage. The railing was all that kept her standing on the stilts SooHyun called shoes as she took in the image of the most amazing guy in the world, and he was waiting there for _her_.

"Hey," she called shyly when she thought she had enough air in her lungs to say conscious at the action. She'd estimated poorly and her voice came out rather too squeakily to be considered 'confident'.

"Hey," Donghae called back with a chuckle. "You . . . look amazing."

"Thanks, you too," Yuri replied, nervously patting her hair. She hadn't even looked at it since MinJi had swirled her fingers though it in the last shop they had visited that day. There'd been more than an hour of walking around in the Seoul summer breeze between then and now. Yuri wondered just how awful she must look as she noted that the ballroom didn't have a single surface that was shiny enough to be a decent mirror.

Donghae closed the gap between them quickly as she was fussing with her hair. "Really, you look wonderful," he soothed.

Despite the fact that she didn't believe his words, Yuri let Donghae lead her over to the only table that was set with silverware. She figured out that Dara had been planning this all along when MinWoo appeared with a basket of breadsticks, two salads, and a lit candelabrum. Yuri flushed bright red at not having figured it out before.

Smiling at the pretty pink on Yuri's cheeks, Donghae turned to his friend and ordered a spread of foods he knew Yuri would like.

MinWoo replied cheekily, "Anything the pop prince and princess want, they get."

The initial conversation was awkward, seeing as Yuri was horrifically embarrassed that she hadn't guessed anything about the fact that Sweet was setting her up and Donghae was enjoying her expression too much to do anything about it. But once they got past that, their conversation flowed in a constant stream that was half bickering and half soul-bearing. MinWoo didn't listen in, but he watched with Dara from the window of the kitchen for half an hour. Curious, and slightly less scrupulous, than Dara, MinWoo remained after she'd gone home to give them privacy; besides, MinWoo was their waiter, he had a reason to be watching them. Sort of.

The spread Donghae had ordered for the pair had been way more food than they required, but they shared bits of each entrée. It was a scene reminiscent of the breakfast that had marked a turning point in their relationship, only this time, there were no secrets between them.

Yuri got to learn so much about Donghae. He'd lost his dad, the man who was his model of everything it meant to be a good man, just before his debut. But even before that he'd been the one taking care of his mother because of his father's and older brother's busy schedules. He had a thin silver bracelet, that he always had on him somewhere, even if it was just inside his pocket, because his mother had given it to him when he'd debuted, saying his father had picked it out. He was really more of a dog person, which is why Marmy disliked him. At one point he'd wanted to become a baker, but that dream flew out the window when he realized that he had neither the skill, nor the patience, to become a decent cook, least of all of pastries.

Each new detail of his life was a magical discovery for Yuri.

There were so many things she still didn't know about him, and it was fascinating to uncover the tiniest things. Donghae didn't understand her interest in the small things, but Yuri knew it was the details that made a person who they were, and she wanted to know exactly what it was that made Donghae tick.

When MinWoo popped out of nowhere with a large plate with _something_ chocolate on it, Yuri was momentarily distracted from her digging into Donghae's mind. The chocolate thing was amazing, and sort of like a giant peanut butter cup candy. There was a layer of cookie crumbs, then a layer of sweetened peanut butter and tiny dark chocolate chips, then a thick slab of darker-than-milk chocolate, topped off with a scoop of chocolate chip ice cream. It was the single most amazing dessert Yuri had ever seen.

It was the single most amazing dessert Yuri had ever _tasted_.

Better even than YeongSaeng's creations.

Donghae made a note of it; they would definitely be coming back here, often.

While Yuri was scraping the last of the chocolaty ice-cream melt from the bowl, Donghae took the opportunity to whisper to MinWoo, "You'd better not lose this hotel of yours to the Americans. HeeJin will never forgive you for making Yuri unhappy."

"Let me get you a bottle of wine and the penthouse is yours," MinWoo said saucily. "You can make her happy enough—"

"Shut up, you know it's not about that," Donghae snapped.

"I know. I was just making sure, seeing as that was basically it with MinYeon," MinWoo returned. "Is she even old enough to drink alcohol, legally, I mean?"

"Not quite," Donghae replied, with a soft smile. Then he returned to a semblance of seriousness for a moment, warning, "If you bring that kind of thing up again, I'm telling HeeJin, and then you're going to need that bottle of wine."

"Aish! Kid can't take a joke anymore," MinWoo said, ruefully.

"Not about Yuri," Donghae clarified.

MinWoo laughed, straightening up. "I thought she had an older brother for that over-protective thing."

"Her over-protective older brother got her into this mess to begin with," Donghae retorted as his Sunbae headed out with the empty dessert dish.

The sound of the piano attracted his attention. When Yuri had finished wiping the plate clean of chocolate, she'd noted that Donghae was deeply involved as a conversation with MinWoo. Thinking it was best not to interrupt, she'd wandered over to the gorgeous ivory of the grand piano.

Trilling lightly on the keys, she tried to remember what Jay had taught her. She could play, by way of knowing how to read one note's musical relation to another, and of knowing how notes ought to fit together in terms of pacing. She could read music, mostly. She just didn't know what any of the notes were actually called, and she knew even less which one corresponded to what piano key.

Suddenly, Donghae was behind her, reaching around to flit his fingers over the keys. _He_ knew his way around a keyboard. Without even looking, he was able to perfectly render an instrumental version of Yuri's favorite song. He sang the words directly in her ear, a deep rumbling hum. Yuri harmonized her soprano with it, adding in bits of her own improv on the keyboard to balance the duet out.

When the song finished up, Donghae lifted his hands from the key board to place them on the silky fabric at Yuri's waist. "You really are a good singer," Donghae murmured. "Do you think you want to take President Ahn up on his offer?"

Yuri twisted around to face Donghae and wrap her arms around his neck. "You don't have to, if you want to go back and finish your studies . . ."

"I already have enough credits to graduate," Yuri proclaimed smugly. "I'm just that much of an IB student, over-achiever to the max."

"But this lifestyle—"

"Is the best thing I've ever had in terms of one," Yuri interrupted. "And before you say it, none of the friends I had there were half as amazing as the ones I have here. I won't be leaving anything behind that I'd regret."

Donghae grinned. "Does that mean you're going to do it?"

"Probably, if you think I can hack it for real," Yuri said.

"I don't think you're quite up for it . . . not so long as you keep wearing those hideous sweatshirts," Donghae teased.

Yuri banged her fist against his chest. "Meanie! Bad Hyungnim," Yuri reprimanded.

"Oppa, _O~ppa_," Donghae said. Girls didn't call the men in their life _hyung_, that was for little brother figures to use respectfully.

"Pabo, Donghae," Yuri teased. "_My_ Donghae isn't oppa, he's always been my hyungnim. And he will _always_ be my hyungnim."

Yuri reached up on her toes, pulling herself up with her elbows on Donghae's shoulders, and kissed him. It thrilled her to do it; and at the same time, she could think of nothing in the world that could be more natural.

Then she jumped back, snatching up his hand and tugging him out of the ballroom, saying, "Let's go for a walk! Seoul is so pretty at night!"

Donghae allowed himself to be pulled into the nearest elevator. He sang along with Yuri to the elevator music, MinWoo never had his hotels play typical instrumental piece. Instead he used his popstar connections to get the latest hits. The song playing as Donghae and Yuri descended was off the latest, English, album of a subgroup from the one of the original greats.

A medley of that song, _Beautiful,_ and _I Must be Crazy_ kept the pair laughing and dancing through the streets of Seoul. When they wandered past a perfectly round, shallow fountain, with low bubblings of brightly lit water, Yuri paused. She slipped off her heels, slipped out of Donghae's arms, hiked up her skirt a bit, and stepped into the cool water.

With one of the rueful sighs that Donghae was getting very used to heaving, he followed suit; pulling off his shoes and socks and rolling up his pant legs, before stepping into the chilly water. Yuri flicked a bit of water at him with her foot; he returned the favor with a bit more force, though he made sure to be careful of her dress.

Their little game lasted, amazingly enough, for nearly an hour, something they could see easily by a large digital clock hanging on the edge of a billboard just down the street. It was getting late, _very_ late. And chilly.

Being wet from the knees down and dressed in a single layer of silk, Yuri began to shiver. That's when Donghae ended the game, by physically picking her up and carrying her from the fountain's watery bounds. She playfully beat at his chest until he set her down and she pretended to stomp away, offended at his manhandling, though she had clearly enjoyed it quite a bit. Donghae caught up to her after sticking his feet back into his shoes, sans socks. He'd shoved the socks into the pocket of his jacket, rather than bothering to put them back on, and he'd slid his jacket off so that when he caught up to Yuri he could wrap it around her shoulders.

"You're not getting sick on me this time," he mentioned. He took her high heels off her hands, slinging them over his shoulder, and placed his other hand around her waist. Yuri used one hand to pull the fabric of his jacket closer around her, and the other she linked up with his hand on her waist.

"I wouldn't dream of it," Yuri replied.

Together they walked through the streets of Seoul, Yuri barefoot and Donghae fussing about it. He threatened to make her wear his shoes but was persuaded away from the idea when Yuri proclaimed that she wore shoes half his size and would end up tripping over her own feet into traffic if he made her wear them.

Donghae reflected briefly on the fact that he hadn't needed YeongSaeng's car after all as the pair neared the dorms. It was just another thing, though one unexpected, that made her so different from MinYeon. To sweeten the deal that the walk had provided, Yuri hadn't felt the least bit worn out through it; at least until they turned the corner onto the street the dorms were on. She didn't even notice her weariness as they made the turn, but Donghae did. He responded by scooping her up in his arms again, only this time he didn't let her down when she protested. He silenced her initial shouts with a kiss, and then elicited other shouts as he twirled her around while he carried her all the way back home.

Until the contract was signed, and the wall between QuaszauR's dorm and the single unit next door had been knocked down, Yuri would be sleeping with Dara. Nowhere else could serve as home after all, even temporarily.

And this wasn't the night to end all nights, it was simply the beginning of a long line of nights; some more exciting than others, but all good in their way. This was a place in the world that they had needed to find.

_This_, and everything it entailed, was _home._

High above them Dara smiled, and felt Jay chuckle though her back. They were standing at the window of their home, the wide expanse of glass in the common room that overlooked the street leading to the popular side of town. Dara was holding one of Jay's hands at her waist, and the pair was sharing a mug of hot chocolate between them.

"They're perfect for each other," Dara sighed, watching as Donghae danced around the quad with Yuri in his arms. He was happier than Dara could remember him ever being, could have ever _imagined_ him being.

On the couch, KyuJeon and YeongSaeng were lounging as a legitimate couple for the first time. The rest of the dorm's inhabitants had gone to bed, though only after a few jibes at how long it had taken them to finally make things official. The only way the pair had quieted their band mates was to threaten Kihun and SooHyun with the fact that Yuri wasn't going back to the States: they were next.

As Jay and Dara watched the couple below, YeongSaeng wondered aloud, "Do you think we should tell them that SooHyun's set them up for _We Got Married_?"

After exchanging one of those _looks_, the kind that communicated volumes worth of information in a fraction of a second, Jay and Dara replied in unison, perfectly together in their scheming, and perfectly in line with SooHyun.

"They'll figure it out soon enough."

_The End_

_^.~_

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**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed it, thanks so much for reading!


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